In your report (High court tells UK lawyers to stop misuse of AI after fake case-law citations, 6 June), you quote Dame Victoria Sharp’s call that we, the Bar Council, and our solicitor colleagues at the Law Society address this matter urgently.
We couldn’t agree more. This high court judgment emphasises the dangers of the misuse by lawyers of artificial intelligence, particularly large language models, and in particular its serious implications for the administration of justice and public confidence in the justice system.
The public is entitled to expect from legal professionals the highest standards of integrity and competence in appropriate understanding and use of new technologies, as well as in all other respects.
The Bar Council has already issued guidance on the opportunities and risks surrounding the use of generative AI, which is quoted by the court, and is in the process of setting up a joint working group with the Bar Standards Board to identify how best we can support barristers to uphold those standards with appropriate further training and supervision.
Lawrence Akka KC
Chair, Bar Council IT panel
