Jurisdiction

United Kingdom (England and Wales)

Misuse of AI – Warning notice Compliance tips for solicitors regarding the use of AI and technology SRA authorises first AI-driven law firm (Garfield.Law) Considerations when using ChatGPT and generative AI software based on LLMs (updated) Artificial Intelligence (AI) Judicial Guidance (October 2025) Generative AI – the essentials

Solicitors are regulated by the SRA, barristers by the BSB (Bar Council guidance), and courts by judicial AI guidance (Oct 2025). The SRA has authorised an AI-driven firm (Garfield.Law).

Key facts

AI instruments recorded: 19
Forums inside it: 2

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AI instruments

Courts Regulators Law societies and bars Privacy regulators No guidance found as of 10 Oct 2026 AI practice notes by Australian court Practice areas

Courts

Courts for United Kingdom (England and Wales)
Instrument	Issuer	Date on page	What it says	Source
Position Statement on the Judicial use of Artificial IntelligencePolicy statementCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: highProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)	2026-10-09	Published 9 October 2026. Sets out how the judiciary of England and Wales uses and governs AI. It complements, and does not replace, the AI Guidance for Judicial Office Holders updated in October 2025. AI will support but not replace judicial decision-making, and only approved tools may be used A judicial office holder remains accountable and must review, verify and approve every AI output used in judicial work	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)
Use of AI in preparing court documents (working group, consultation and update)ConsultationCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateSecondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Civil Justice Council	2025-01 (working group set up)	CJC working group considering whether rules are needed on legal representatives using AI to prepare pleadings, witness statements and expert reports. Respondents broadly agreed no additional AI-specific formal requirements are currently needed for pleadings, skeleton arguments and similar documents Witness statements remain the main open question (possible safeguards or disclosure)	Civil Justice Council
Lord President's address to the Royal Faculty of Procurators (AI in the courts)SpeechCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: lowProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.Scotland	Judiciary of Scotland	2026-06-05	Lord Pentland explains how the Scottish judiciary is approaching AI deployment; not a practice note. No AI-specific practice note for court users located; this speech is the main public statement	Judiciary of Scotland
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Judicial Guidance (October 2025)Judicial guidelinePrimary sourcePractice note. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)	month per URL; replaces April 2025 version · Effective 2025-10	Updated guidance for judicial office holders on AI use; replaces the April 2025 guidance.	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)
Lady Chief Justice's Opening of Term Address (AI remarks)SpeechCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: lowProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.Northern Ireland	Judiciary NI	2026-09-07	Lady Chief Justice notes AI could help case management and discovery while acknowledging integrity, regulatory and transparency concerns; no formal practice direction. No NI court practice direction on AI located as of 10 Oct 2026	Judiciary NI

Regulators

Regulators for United Kingdom (England and Wales)
Instrument	Issuer	Date on page	What it says	Source
Risk Outlook report: the use of artificial intelligence in the legal marketRegulator reportRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	2023-11-20	November 2023 SRA Risk Outlook on how solicitors were using AI, and the risks the SRA highlighted then (accuracy, confidentiality and accountability). The figures below are from that report, not a later survey. The November 2023 report said three quarters of the largest firms were using AI The same report said over 60% of large firms and a third of small firms were exploring generative AI	Solicitors Regulation Authority
Guidance on the use of Artificial Intelligence and other technologies by barristersGuidanceRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateExact publication date not shown on the news page; guidance PDF at barstandardsboard.org.uk/asset/5E1BAA5C-614C-4105-AFAE9A9CCDF8D97B/.Secondary. Guides barristers. Not a court practice note.	Bar Standards Board	Not stated	BSB guidance explaining how existing BSB Handbook duties apply when barristers use AI, issued after Ayinde v London Borough of Haringey. Practical framework for safe AI use while meeting professional obligations Applies existing Handbook rules rather than creating new ones	Bar Standards Board
ChatGPT in the Courts: Safely and Effectively Navigating AI in Legal PracticeArticleRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: lowProfessional guidance. Guides barristers. Not a court practice note.	Bar Standards Board	Not stated	BSB article on risks of generative AI for barristers, using the US Mata v Avianca fake-citation case as a cautionary example. Barristers remain responsible for submissions prepared with AI	Bar Standards Board
Misuse of AI – Warning noticeRegulator warningPrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	not stated on page read	Warns that AI has no separate legal personality; solicitors remain responsible for competence, supervision and properly arguable representations; supervisors can be liable for false citations put before the court. Code of Conduct for Solicitors paras 2.4, 3.2, 3.5; Code for Firms paras 2.1, 4.3, 4.4. Cites Ayinde v Haringey [2025] EWHC 1383 (Admin), UK v SSHD [2026] UKUT 81 (IAC), BCP v A Mother [2026] EWFC 71 (B), Cork v Smith [2026] EWHC 1199 (Ch).	Solicitors Regulation Authority
AI use in Legal Services – CRL guidanceGuidanceRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateDate taken from URL path.Secondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	CILEx Regulation	2026-10-01	CILEx Regulation guidance on how the CILEX Code of Conduct applies to AI use: competence, accuracy, confidentiality, transparency and human oversight. Responsibility cannot be delegated; AI output must be reviewed, verified and approved by a competent person	CILEx Regulation
Compliance tips for solicitors regarding the use of AI and technologyRegulator guidancePrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	not stated	Practical compliance tips, incl. governance, systems and controls and client information security.	Solicitors Regulation Authority
LSB update on its approach to regulating AI useRegulator statementRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: lowUnverified datePublication date not captured.Secondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Legal Services Board	Not stated	Oversight regulator sets out a pro-innovation approach to AI in legal services and its plans for the coming year. Explains scope of LSB remit over AI and technology	Legal Services Board
SRA authorises first AI-driven law firm (Garfield.Law)Regulator decisionPrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	not stated on page read	First authorisation of a purely AI-based firm; Garfield is not autonomous, acts only on client approval, with supervision and monitoring.	Solicitors Regulation Authority

Law societies and bars

Law societies and bars for United Kingdom (England and Wales)
Instrument	Issuer	Date on page	What it says	Source
AI and lawtech hubResource hubLaw societyPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	The Law Society (England and Wales)	2026-05-26 (latest item)	Law Society hub of AI guidance, events and resources for solicitors, organised around innovation, impact and integrity. Links to Generative AI – the essentials and related practice notes	The Law Society (England and Wales)
Guide to Generative AIGuidanceLaw societyPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.Scotland	Law Society of Scotland	Not stated	Guide for Scottish solicitors on safely incorporating generative AI, covering risk assessment, data protection, information security and professional duties. Recommends a data protection and information security risk assessment before using any generative AI system	Law Society of Scotland
Considerations when using ChatGPT and generative AI software based on LLMs (updated)Professional guidancePrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Guides barristers. Not a court practice note.	Bar Council (England and Wales)	updated following recent High Court case law; date not stated on page read	Ethics guidance for barristers updated after recent case law; joint working group with BSB on training and supervision. Guidance text: https://www.barcouncilethics.co.uk/documents/considerations-when-using-chatgpt-and-generative-ai-software-based-on-large-language-models/	Bar Council (England and Wales)
Guidance on the Responsible Use of Artificial IntelligenceGuidanceLaw societyPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.Northern Ireland	Law Society of Northern Ireland	Not stated	Guidance from the Society’s Law Tech Group to help NI solicitors and staff use AI responsibly; principles apply to all existing AI technologies. Covers notetaking, drafting, summarising, eDiscovery uses Launch announced at lawsoc-ni.org/news/new-ai-guidance-provides-support-for-solicitors-in-northern-ireland	Law Society of Northern Ireland
Generative AI – the essentialsLaw society guidancePrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	The Law Society (England and Wales)	live resource	Practice guidance for solicitors on generative AI risks and obligations.	The Law Society (England and Wales)

Privacy regulators

Privacy regulators for United Kingdom (England and Wales)
Instrument	Issuer	Date on page	What it says	Source
Guidance on AI and data protectionPrivacy guidancePrivacy regulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateThe ICO page says this guidance is under review because of the Data (Use and Access) Act and may change.Secondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Information Commissioner's Office	2023-03-15 (updated)	ICO guidance on applying UK GDPR to AI systems, including fairness, lawfulness, transparency and accountability. The guidance page says it was updated on 15 March 2023 and is under review because of the Data (Use and Access) Act, so it may change. Updated 15 March 2023 to clarify fairness requirements The ICO says the guidance is under review after the Data (Use and Access) Act and may change	Information Commissioner's Office

No guidance found as of 10 Oct 2026

Bar of Northern Ireland · Bar · checked 2026-10-10
No NI Bar-specific AI guidance found as of 10 Oct 2026 (search returned only England & Wales Bar Council/BSB items).
Judiciary NI · Court · checked 2026-10-10
No formal AI practice direction found as of 10 Oct 2026; only speeches (see Opening of Term 2026 row).
Judiciary NI
Faculty of Advocates · Bar · checked 2026-10-10
No AI guidance found on advocates.org.uk homepage or via search as of 10 Oct 2026.
Faculty of Advocates
Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service · Court · checked 2026-10-10
No AI practice note for court users found as of 10 Oct 2026 (search: site:scotcourts.gov.uk artificial intelligence guidance returned only corporate plans and minutes).

Every stored instrument

This is the catalogue for United Kingdom (England and Wales). An instrument appears under “Rules that apply” only when you name the court or tribunal, or say that no court is involved.

AI instruments for United Kingdom (England and Wales)
Instrument	Issuer	Date on page	What it says	Source
Position Statement on the Judicial use of Artificial IntelligencePolicy statementCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: highProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)	2026-10-09	Published 9 October 2026. Sets out how the judiciary of England and Wales uses and governs AI. It complements, and does not replace, the AI Guidance for Judicial Office Holders updated in October 2025. AI will support but not replace judicial decision-making, and only approved tools may be used A judicial office holder remains accountable and must review, verify and approve every AI output used in judicial work	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)
Use of AI in preparing court documents (working group, consultation and update)ConsultationCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateSecondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Civil Justice Council	2025-01 (working group set up)	CJC working group considering whether rules are needed on legal representatives using AI to prepare pleadings, witness statements and expert reports. Respondents broadly agreed no additional AI-specific formal requirements are currently needed for pleadings, skeleton arguments and similar documents Witness statements remain the main open question (possible safeguards or disclosure)	Civil Justice Council
Risk Outlook report: the use of artificial intelligence in the legal marketRegulator reportRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	2023-11-20	November 2023 SRA Risk Outlook on how solicitors were using AI, and the risks the SRA highlighted then (accuracy, confidentiality and accountability). The figures below are from that report, not a later survey. The November 2023 report said three quarters of the largest firms were using AI The same report said over 60% of large firms and a third of small firms were exploring generative AI	Solicitors Regulation Authority
Guidance on the use of Artificial Intelligence and other technologies by barristersGuidanceRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateExact publication date not shown on the news page; guidance PDF at barstandardsboard.org.uk/asset/5E1BAA5C-614C-4105-AFAE9A9CCDF8D97B/.Secondary. Guides barristers. Not a court practice note.	Bar Standards Board	Not stated	BSB guidance explaining how existing BSB Handbook duties apply when barristers use AI, issued after Ayinde v London Borough of Haringey. Practical framework for safe AI use while meeting professional obligations Applies existing Handbook rules rather than creating new ones	Bar Standards Board
ChatGPT in the Courts: Safely and Effectively Navigating AI in Legal PracticeArticleRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: lowProfessional guidance. Guides barristers. Not a court practice note.	Bar Standards Board	Not stated	BSB article on risks of generative AI for barristers, using the US Mata v Avianca fake-citation case as a cautionary example. Barristers remain responsible for submissions prepared with AI	Bar Standards Board
AI and lawtech hubResource hubLaw societyPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	The Law Society (England and Wales)	2026-05-26 (latest item)	Law Society hub of AI guidance, events and resources for solicitors, organised around innovation, impact and integrity. Links to Generative AI – the essentials and related practice notes	The Law Society (England and Wales)
Guidance on AI and data protectionPrivacy guidancePrivacy regulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateThe ICO page says this guidance is under review because of the Data (Use and Access) Act and may change.Secondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Information Commissioner's Office	2023-03-15 (updated)	ICO guidance on applying UK GDPR to AI systems, including fairness, lawfulness, transparency and accountability. The guidance page says it was updated on 15 March 2023 and is under review because of the Data (Use and Access) Act, so it may change. Updated 15 March 2023 to clarify fairness requirements The ICO says the guidance is under review after the Data (Use and Access) Act and may change	Information Commissioner's Office
Misuse of AI – Warning noticeRegulator warningPrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	not stated on page read	Warns that AI has no separate legal personality; solicitors remain responsible for competence, supervision and properly arguable representations; supervisors can be liable for false citations put before the court. Code of Conduct for Solicitors paras 2.4, 3.2, 3.5; Code for Firms paras 2.1, 4.3, 4.4. Cites Ayinde v Haringey [2025] EWHC 1383 (Admin), UK v SSHD [2026] UKUT 81 (IAC), BCP v A Mother [2026] EWFC 71 (B), Cork v Smith [2026] EWHC 1199 (Ch).	Solicitors Regulation Authority
AI use in Legal Services – CRL guidanceGuidanceRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumUnverified dateDate taken from URL path.Secondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	CILEx Regulation	2026-10-01	CILEx Regulation guidance on how the CILEX Code of Conduct applies to AI use: competence, accuracy, confidentiality, transparency and human oversight. Responsibility cannot be delegated; AI output must be reviewed, verified and approved by a competent person	CILEx Regulation
Compliance tips for solicitors regarding the use of AI and technologyRegulator guidancePrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	not stated	Practical compliance tips, incl. governance, systems and controls and client information security.	Solicitors Regulation Authority
LSB update on its approach to regulating AI useRegulator statementRegulatorPrimary sourceConfidence: lowUnverified datePublication date not captured.Secondary. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Legal Services Board	Not stated	Oversight regulator sets out a pro-innovation approach to AI in legal services and its plans for the coming year. Explains scope of LSB remit over AI and technology	Legal Services Board
SRA authorises first AI-driven law firm (Garfield.Law)Regulator decisionPrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Solicitors Regulation Authority	not stated on page read	First authorisation of a purely AI-based firm; Garfield is not autonomous, acts only on client approval, with supervision and monitoring.	Solicitors Regulation Authority
Guide to Generative AIGuidanceLaw societyPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Law Society of Scotland	Not stated	Guide for Scottish solicitors on safely incorporating generative AI, covering risk assessment, data protection, information security and professional duties. Recommends a data protection and information security risk assessment before using any generative AI system	Law Society of Scotland
Considerations when using ChatGPT and generative AI software based on LLMs (updated)Professional guidancePrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Guides barristers. Not a court practice note.	Bar Council (England and Wales)	updated following recent High Court case law; date not stated on page read	Ethics guidance for barristers updated after recent case law; joint working group with BSB on training and supervision. Guidance text: https://www.barcouncilethics.co.uk/documents/considerations-when-using-chatgpt-and-generative-ai-software-based-on-large-language-models/	Bar Council (England and Wales)
Lord President's address to the Royal Faculty of Procurators (AI in the courts)SpeechCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: lowProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Judiciary of Scotland	2026-06-05	Lord Pentland explains how the Scottish judiciary is approaching AI deployment; not a practice note. No AI-specific practice note for court users located; this speech is the main public statement	Judiciary of Scotland
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Judicial Guidance (October 2025)Judicial guidelinePrimary sourcePractice note. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)	month per URL; replaces April 2025 version · Effective 2025-10	Updated guidance for judicial office holders on AI use; replaces the April 2025 guidance.	Courts and Tribunals Judiciary (England and Wales)
Guidance on the Responsible Use of Artificial IntelligenceGuidanceLaw societyPrimary sourceConfidence: mediumProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Law Society of Northern Ireland	Not stated	Guidance from the Society’s Law Tech Group to help NI solicitors and staff use AI responsibly; principles apply to all existing AI technologies. Covers notetaking, drafting, summarising, eDiscovery uses Launch announced at lawsoc-ni.org/news/new-ai-guidance-provides-support-for-solicitors-in-northern-ireland	Law Society of Northern Ireland
Generative AI – the essentialsLaw society guidancePrimary sourceProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	The Law Society (England and Wales)	live resource	Practice guidance for solicitors on generative AI risks and obligations.	The Law Society (England and Wales)
Lady Chief Justice's Opening of Term Address (AI remarks)SpeechCourtPrimary sourceConfidence: lowProfessional guidance. Scope not stated in the stored source.	Judiciary NI	2026-09-07	Lady Chief Justice notes AI could help case management and discovery while acknowledging integrity, regulatory and transparency concerns; no formal practice direction. No NI court practice direction on AI located as of 10 Oct 2026	Judiciary NI

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