A top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee wants to know whether two federal judges use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in their court orders.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, sent letters last week to U.S. District of Mississippi Judge Henry Wingate and U.S. District of New Jersey Judge Julien Xavier Neals after reports that the judges used GenAI this summer to write court orders that allegedly contained “serious factual inaccuracies.”
Judge Wingate’s errors included citing the names of plaintiffs and defendants that were not parties in the case, misquoting statutory text, making inaccurate statements not supported by the court’s record, and referencing declarations of four people who were not involved in the case.
Meanwhile, Judge Neals attributed quotes to the defendants that they claimed they never made, used quotes that never actually appeared in other court decisions, and misstated the outcomes of those cases.
“No less than the attorneys who appear before them, judges must be held to the highest standards of integrity, candor, and factual accuracy,” wrote Sen. Grassley in both letters. “Indeed, Article III judges should be held to a higher standard, given the binding force of their rulings on the rights and obligations of litigants before them.”
Specific to Judge Wingate, Grassley added, “These do not appear to be simple slips of the pen or mechanical oversights, but substantive errors that undermine confidence in the Court’s deliberative process. When litigants see such mistakes dismissed as ‘clerical,’ it raises serious doubts about whether they – and the American people at large – can trust that the Court is affording their cases the care and accuracy to which they are entitled.”
Grassley had requested that the judges respond by this week as to whether they, their law clerks, or any court staff used GenAI, including if they entered non-public case information into a GenAI system, while preparing their decisions.
The senator also requested the judges to re-docket their original orders.
“As Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I am committed to safeguarding litigants’ rights and ensuring that every party in federal court receives fair treatment and careful review by the Article III judges confirmed by the Senate,” Grassley wrote.
Judge Wingate’s order paused the enforcement of a law that restricted diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in Mississippi’s public schools and universities, while Judge Neals’ order was related to a biopharma securities case. Judge Neals withdrew his decision in July following complaints about its inaccuracies.