AI output retained as evidence, including errors. It is not an adopted legal opinion. Line numbers identify logical transcript lines, not original screen or court pages.
Prompt
Can a Utah lawyer avoid sanctions for fabricated citations by explaining that a law clerk used ChatGPT without the lawyer's knowledge?
L005Generally, no. A Utah lawyer cannot automatically avoid sanctions for fabricated legal citations by claiming that a law clerk used ChatGPT without the lawyer's knowledge.
L011Utah Rule of Civil Procedure 11: An attorney who signs or submits a court filing certifies that its legal contentions are warranted by existing law or a nonfrivolous argument for changing it, following an inquiry reasonable under the circumstances. Delegating research to a clerk does not eliminate that obligation.
L013Utah Rule of Professional Conduct 5.3: Lawyers have supervisory responsibilities concerning nonlawyer assistants. A law clerk's unauthorized use of AI may be relevant to whether the lawyer exercised reasonable supervision, but it is not an automatic defense.
L017Utah Rule of Professional Conduct 3.3: A lawyer who discovers that a filing contains fabricated authorities may have a duty to take reasonable remedial measures to correct the record.
L033The lawyer's lack of knowledge may mitigate sanctions, but it does not necessarily defeat them. Rule 11 focuses substantially on the objective reasonableness of the inquiry preceding the filing, not merely whether the attorney intentionally misled the court.
L035There is also an important procedural distinction: Utah Rule 11 contains specific requirements governing sanctions, including notice and an opportunity to respond. The availability and severity of sanctions depend on the circumstances and the authority under which sanctions are sought.
L041The more defensible argument is not "I didn't know my clerk used ChatGPT," but "I exercised reasonable supervision and performed a reasonable prefiling inquiry, despite which the error occurred."
L045One qualification: This is an analysis of the governing Utah rules, not a verified account of how a particular Utah court has ruled on this exact AI-citation defense. A specific case could turn on the judge's findings and the precise sanctions authority invoked.