AI “Lawyer” Gets Banned In New York Courtroom

A New York appeals court was shocked when a man attempted to use an AI-generated avatar as his lawyer.

Jerome Dewald is involved in an employment dispute. He submitted a video to present his case before the court, but as the video played, the judge realized the person speaking wasn’t real. It was an AI-generated man created to deliver Dewald’s legal arguments.

“May it please the court,” the avatar began in a robotic tone, which is when Justice Sallie Manzanet-Daniels paused and asked, “Is that counsel for the case?” Dewald responded honestly: “I generated that. That’s not a real person.”

AI Lawyer Rejected in Court After Man Uses Avatar to Argue His Case

The courtroom quickly realized the avatar wasn’t just unusual, it was completely unauthorized. The judge was clearly frustrated, saying,

“You are not going to use this courtroom as a launch for your business, sir.”

Dewald, who runs a tech startup called Pro Se Pro, said he created the video because he gets nervous speaking in court and wanted his arguments to be clearly delivered. He later apologized, saying he didn’t mean to deceive anyone.

Is It Legal to Use AI in Court?

The short answer: Not like this.

While you can ask for permission to use visuals or video presentations, creating an AI “lawyer” to speak on your behalf is not accepted in courtrooms. Dewald had applied to submit a video, but didn’t mention that the speaker would be artificial, which the judge made clear was misleading.

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Dewald's legal case is still pending.