AI
Lawyers have a duty of technological competence, which includes understanding AI.
What is YES.
ABA Opinion 512 (July 29, 2024)
See also, State Bar’s Guidance for the Use of GAI
Lawyer utilizes a website-based AI chatbot to communicate with clients and potential clients.
What is yes with qualifications?
Lawyers must maintain technological competence, and remain vigilant as AI tools continue to evolve.
Oregon 2026-208
A lawyer must disclose information to the Court that is reasonably likely to give rise to a judicial disqualification even if the Court does not raise the recusal question.
What is YES.
ABA Opinion 522 (April 9, 2026)
Extra Credit - what if the information is protected by privilege??
This discipline was imposed on a NY judge who attending a public school board meeting to challenge a policy for selecting valedictorians, seeing the appointment of his son. During a heated exchange with the School District's counsel, judge tells attorney, "You can refer to me, Counsel, as judge” and “If you are going to try to be a lawyer, then refer to me by my title as well.”
What is public censure?
NY: Corey Klein
Lawyer represents Wife in a divorce. Husband makes a settlement demand that requires both Wife and Wife lawyer’s lawyer to agree to a broad non-disparagement clause regarding Husband. Wife wants to accept the offer.
What is no?
Lawyer may not participate in offering or making a client settlement agreement that commits a settling party’s lawyer not to disparage the opposing party within the context of the lawyer’s practice.
Agreement would be a restriction on lawyer's ability to practice law as it would restrict a lawyer’s right to practice by limiting the lawyer’s ability to consult freely with current or prospective clients about claims they may have against the opposing party.
However, it would be permissible if it only limits the lawyer’s personal speech or conduct outside the practice of law.
TX Opinion No. 708
A lawyer can use AI to record a client call and create a summary.
What is YES, with client consent, and understanding the risks of preserving recordings of clients.
New York Bar Association, 2025-6
Programmer, who is not a lawyer, creates AI chatbot that provides legal advice.
What is no?
Likely violation of ER 5.5 regarding the unauthorized practice of law. "There must always be a human element in the legal work product to ensure that lawyers are upholding their ethical obligations."
PA Joint Opinion 2024-200
A lawyer has an obligation to a former client by providing the file and refunding advanced fees AND to comply with requests from the former client/successor counsel to include generating written responses regarding things not recorded in the file.
What is NO.
Not generally, but limited exceptions: information is not available elsewhere and information is necessary to protect client’s interests.
ABA Opinion 520 (January 21, 2026)
This discipline was imposed on a California judge who Over a four-and-a-half year period, the judge repeatedly made public remarks in the courtroom threatening to “shoot” people, or have them “shot” by his bailiff, remarks directed at defendants, attorneys, and a retired judge.
What is public admonishment (censure)?
CA: Judge Enrique Monguia
Lawyer represents Wife in a divorce. Husband makes a settlement demand that requires both Wife and Wife lawyer’s lawyer to agree to a non-disclosure clause in a client settlement agreement, whereby the lawyer agrees not to reveal confidential information related to the representation for marketing purposes. Wife wants to accept the offer.
What is yes so long as the restriction applies only to confidential information that, under the Rules, a lawyer may not reveal without client consent?
It would be impermissible if extends to communication of the lawyer’s general experience gained in handling the settled matter.
TX Opinion No. 708
AI hallucinates.
What is YES.
Check citations that AI gives you. AI creates fake cases, creates a fake quote from a real/fake cases, and creates a legal argument that isn’t in the real/fake case it quotes.
Read the case you cite the Court.
Lawyer asks former client for permission to allow attorney to write a Google review of the lawyer's services and offers a nominal gift.
What is no?
A lawyer may ask a former client to write a Google review of the lawyer’s services, and may offer the former client a nominal gift for doing so, provided the lawyer does not draft the Google review for the client or condition the gift on the content of the review. The lawyer may not use the former client’s confidential information to the disadvantage of the former client.
NYSBA Opinion 1286
When a lawyer withdraws from representation, they should be detailed in their motion to the Court regarding the reasons so the Court is sure to grant the motion.
What is NO
Duty of confidentiality trumps getting out of the case
Cite only professional considerations, and if Court still doesn’t let you out ask for an in camera review with another judicial officer
ABA Opinion 519 (December 3, 2025)
This discipline was imposed against a LA judge who presided over a pre-trial hearing in a civil matter. After the hearing, the judge asked about settling the case. The judge then used an expletive, advising plaintiffs’ counsel to tell defense counsel to “go f--- himself” if he did not raise his offer.
What is 30-day suspension?
Judge Donald "Chick" Foret
Lawyer A and Lawyer B represent Client A and Client B, respectively. Throughout the dispute and representation, the interaction between the parties and their respective counsel has been tense and difficult, including accusations from both parties of alleged misconduct by counsel.
Lawyer A and Lawyer B agree to the settlement term prohibiting the lawyers and their represented parties from filing a grievance complaint with the North Carolina State Bar against the lawyers involved.
What is no?
A lawyer who attempts to dissuade a person from reporting his or her alleged misconduct in the course of settlement negotiations or in any other context would be engaging in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice in violation of Rule 1.2(d) [currently codified as Rule 8.4(d)] of the Rules of Professional Conduct.
NC State Bar 2025-2
Client generated AI documents are protected by the attorney client privilege or by the work product doctrine.
What is NO.
United States v. Heppner, US District Court, Southern District of New York 25 Cr. 503, February 19, 2026
Lawyer offers current client a $50 credit against legal fees in return for client posting a postive rating attorney's services on Avvo.
What is probably no?
Permissible so long as the “credit is not contingent on the content of the rating, the client is not coerced or compelled to rate the lawyer, and the ratings and reviews are done by the clients and not the lawyer.”
NYSBA 1052
A mediator can say “this is the best offer opposing party will make” to a party even if the mediator knows that opposing party will sweeten the pot.
What is NO.
Even though a mediator is not subject to the model rules when acting as a neutral, they cannot give credence to statements they know are false or misleading.
ABA Opinion 518 (October 15, 2025)
This discipline was imposed on a NJ judge who posted support for "Blue Lives Matter" and other social movements on Facebook, and who failed to remove "inappropriate content" from Facebook page after beign advised by the judicial conduct committee to do so.
What is a 2-month suspension without pay?
NJ; Judge Robert LePore
Attorney mediator (Mediator) was designated to mediate a court-ordered mediation. The parties and their respective lawyers were present at the mediation. One of the terms to be included in the mediated settlement agreement (agreement) was proposed by one of the lawyers and provides that no party shall file a grievance complaint against any lawyer involved in the case, based on a claim arising out of the current cause of action, with the State Bar.
Mediator acts as a scribe for the agreement.
What is no?
Preamble 3; E.R. 2.4 governing lawyer as third-party neutral.
Lawyer is subject to the Rules of Professional Conduct when lawyer serves “as a third-party neutral, a nonrepresentational role helping the parties to resolve a dispute or other matter.
NC State Bar 2025-2
Evidence rules have changed because of AI generated evidence and deep fakes.
What is NOT YET.
On May 7, the judicial panel considering proposed amendments to the Federal Evidence Rules delayed voting on proposed amendments related to the admission of deepfakes (burden shifting in 901) and application of Expert Witness standards to AI (new 707)
On-line platform collects information from users about workplace experiences, then shares the information with lawyers in an anonymized form, and lawyers can pay to have the user's identifying information disclosed.
Lawyer pays on-line platform to have a user's identifying information, and then reaches out to user.
What is permissible and not a solicitation or advertisement if user consents to the disclosure of the anonymized information and consents to the disclosure of the user’s contact information?
NYSBA Opinion 1294
A judge must recuse themselves in a case when a friendship with an attorney brings impartiality into question, even if the judge believes there is no basis for the disqualification.
What is DEPENDS.
ABA Formal Opinion 488 (September 5, 2019)
It’s an oldie, but a good reminder to be proactive regarding disclosure of working relationships with both other counsel and judicial officers.
This discipline was imposed on a MN judge who (1) improperly issued writs of mandamus ordering the court administrator to increase the judge's court reporter's salary, and (2) conducted remoted juvenile court hearings while riding as a passenger in a moving vehicle with his wife driver.
What is a 9-month suspension by the MN Supreme Court?
Judge John Dehen
Same as above. Parties do not reach a resolution at the mediation but did discuss with Mediator the inclusion of a term in the agreement to not report any lawyer to the State Bar. The parties and their lawyers subsequently signed the agreement outside the presence of Mediator. Mediator subsequently learned of the agreement and the inclusion of the problematic term regarding reporting any lawyer to the State Bar.
Mediator reports to State Bar.
What is no?
While 8.3 recognizes lawyers are subject to rules of professional conduct, NC Standards for Professional Conduct of Mediators does not permit mediator to disclose information concerning a lawyer’s professional responsibility that is learned during mediation
NC State Bar 2025-2