When AI Hallucinated in Court: Ireland's Warning to Every Self-Represented Litigant

Ireland's Court of Appeal dismissed Gemma O'Doherty's appeal in March 2026 after her AI-generated legal submissions cited cases that do not exist. Justice Caroline Costello called this an "inherent and well-known risk" of using AI to write legal papers.

What AI Hallucination Means in Legal Practice

AI hallucination occurs when a language model generates plausible-sounding text - including case names, citations, and legal authorities - that has no basis in fact. In court submissions, this is especially dangerous. Judges and opposing parties rely on cited authorities being real.

Justice Costello's Five Principles on AI Use in Court

• AI may be used responsibly to assist with legal research
• All AI-generated content must be independently verified before submission
• Unverified case citations are not acceptable - regardless of intent
• AI use must be disclosed to the court and the opposing party
• Sanctions may follow where AI leads to the court being misled

What This Means for Self-Represented Litigants Using AI

Self-represented litigants are most at risk. They rely on free AI tools without legal training to verify outputs. The Costello judgment creates clear obligations: verify everything, disclose AI use, and never submit citations you have not personally confirmed.

Why myAffidavit.ai Is the Responsible AI Affidavit Generator

myAffidavit.ai is an offline AI affidavit writer designed for document drafting, not legal research. It is not intended to retrieve case law or provide legal advice. You provide the facts, but AI-assisted output can still omit, alter or introduce details and must be checked before use. Request controlled pre-launch access at £99 + VAT (£118.80 total).