WASHINGTON (7News) — What began as a routine foreclosure appeal turned into a warning about one of the fastest-growing problems facing the courts: artificial intelligence producing information that looks authoritative, but isn't real.

The D.C. Court of Appeals struck Deutsche Bank's entire brief after judges discovered that four cases cited by one of the bank's attorneys did not exist.

Courtrooms across the country are grappling with the growing use of artificial intelligence in the legal system - potentially corrupting evidence and court filings.

The attorney acknowledged using artificial intelligence to help find case law and, according to the court, “did not verify the existence or accuracy of those citations before filing the brief.”

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The discovery comes less than a year after our reporting exposed growing concerns about AI-generated material making its way into courtrooms and the difficulty judges and lawyers face determining what is authentic.

During that investigation, D.C. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby warned specifically about AI hallucinations and the danger of relying on technology without checking its work.

That is essentially what the court said happened here.

While reviewing Deutsche Bank's brief, the judges tried to locate several of the cases cited by the bank's lawyers. They could not.

DC Court of Appeals Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby has helped lead national efforts to prepare courts for artificial intelligence, cautioning judges about its risks and the need for safeguards. Photo: SBG