Check authorities in a defamation draft before they are cited
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- List each case or statute named in the draft, the sentence that attributes a rule to it, and a blank for the reporter or the section and the page. Do not add an authority. Do not rewrite the sentence.
- What the lawyer must review
- Opinion 512 and the California 2026 generative-AI guidance require you to verify every citation. Candor cannot be delegated. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 is the certification you make when you sign a federal-court paper. Libel in California is defined in Civil Code § 45. Public-official fault is stated in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964). You open the opinion or the section before it is cited.
- Written for / version
- United States versionUS
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | Potential support includes organising research leads and preparing preliminary structure or wording. Confirm the tool’s capability and permitted scope. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Open each relied-on authority independently. Confirm its existence, current status, proposition and any quotation or pinpoint reference.
- Confirm the output against the client’s instructions and the complete relevant source material, including omissions or contradictions.
- Resolve exceptions and record the responsible lawyer’s approval of the exact output and intended use.