Tag: B.C

B.C. lawyer reprimanded for citing fake cases invented by ChatGPT

The cases would have provided compelling precedent for a divorced dad to take his children to China — had they been real.

But instead of savouring courtroom victory, the Vancouver lawyer for a millionaire embroiled in an acrimonious split has been told to personally compensate her client’s ex-wife’s lawyers for the time it took them to learn the cases she hoped to cite were conjured up by ChatGPT.

In a decision released Monday, a B.C. Supreme Court judge reprimanded lawyer Chong Ke for including two AI “hallucinations” in an application filed last December.

The cases never made it into Ke’s arguments; they were withdrawn once she learned they were non-existent.

Justice David Masuhara said he didn’t think the lawyer intended to deceive the court — but he was troubled all the same.

“As this case has unfortunately made clear, generative AI is still no substitute for the professional expertise

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B.C. Law Society investigates lawyer who used AI to make fake case law

In his ruling, Justice David Masuhara said he found the details of the case ‘alarming’

Published Feb 27, 2024  •  Last updated Feb 28, 2024  •  4 minute read

A lawyer who said it was ‘mortifying’ to learn she had submitted fake AI-generated case law in error to back her client’s petition in a family law hearing in B.C. Supreme Court is being investigated by the province’s regulatory body for lawyers. Photo by Jason Payne /PNG

A lawyer who said it was “mortifying” to learn she had submitted AI-generated fake case law in error to back her client’s petition in a family law hearing is being investigated by the province’s regulatory body for lawyers.

“I can confirm that the Law Society is investigating the

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Who gets Rover after a breakup? Changes to B.C. family law aim to help courts decide pet custody

British Columbia Attorney General Niki Sharma says the often difficult issue of pet custody for families going through breakups could be easier to navigate with family law changes that took effect Monday.

She says the changes aim to improve the process for determining ownership of pets after a separation or divorce.

Previously, Sharma says pet ownership issues following a breakup were similar to those used by the courts to determine how property is divided.

Instead, the courts will now consider a person’s ability and willingness to care for an animal, relationships between a child and an animal and risks of animal cruelty to help determine pet ownership.

B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma is asking for the public’s input on further changes to the family law system in the province. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press)

Sharma introduced the amendments to the B.C. Family Law Act last spring to ensure the important role

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