Sullivan & Cromwell, a prominent elite law firm, is now apologizing after submitting a court filing full of AI-induced errors and "hallucinations," the New York Times reported.
What's happening?
The premier firm, one of the world's most profitable, has made countless headlines over its deals, including the recent merger of Elon Musk's xAI and SpaceX, as well as its representation of President Trump.
Now, the firm is under fire after submitting a court filing with AI-hallucinated legal citations and sources, which also misquoted the law.
The filing occurred in a case involving Prince Group, a Cambodian real estate conglomerate, over alleged fraudulent behavior and forced labor. Sullivan & Cromwell was initially called out by Boies Schiller Flexner, a rival firm that is representing Prince Group, the Times reported.
Sullivan & Cromwell — whose partners charge over $2,000 per hour, according to the Financial Times — confirmed that AI was responsible for many of the errors, with partner Andrew Dietderich apologizing in a letter to Martin Glenn, the Chief Judge of the US Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York.
According to Reuters, Dietderich wrote, "We deeply regret that this occurred… I apologize on behalf of our entire team. I also called Boies Schiller Flexner LLP on Friday to thank them for bringing this matter to our attention and to apologize directly to them as well."
In the apology letter, Dietderich explained that while the firm has "comprehensive policies and training requirements governing the use of AI tools," these AI policies were not followed in this instance.
Other firms were quick to pile on after the news broke.
POV: You just paid S&C, one of the three most expensive and high-powered law firms in the world, $3000 per hour to submit AI slop to the court on your behalf.
— SMB Attorney (@SMB_Attorney) April 21, 2026
No one is safe. pic.twitter.com/zU4DFAwLyK
In a post on X, Eric Pacifici, an attorney working for SMB Law Group, lambasted Sullivan & Cromwell over the scandal, saying, "POV: You just paid S&C, one of the three most expensive and high-powered law firms in the world, $3,000 per hour to submit AI slop to the court on your behalf. No one is safe."
What's next?
The scandal comes as Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei warns that AI could wipe out nearly half of entry-level positions in white-collar fields, which certainly includes the legal arena.
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Amodei's warning of an "employment crisis" that could occur "within the next one to five years," posted on X, must be taken seriously. Beyond wiping out countless jobs, such improper use of AI has the potential to sink the credibility of a legal team's efforts and alter how our legal system operates.
As AI develops, more firms will establish safeguards and policies to protect against the inclusion of AI hallucinations in official documents. However, this will also not be the last time a hallucinating AI interferes with a case.
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