Artificial Intelligence (AI) is having a transformative impact in almost every industry, including law. However, with the rise of ChatGPT and other AI-based technologies, there are growing concerns about how such tools can be used by some people in unethical ways. This section offers resources to help you distinguish between permissible and impermissible uses of AI in legal writing.
A Primer on Using Artificial Intelligence in the Legal Profession
A helpful article that provides an overview of what AI is and its use in the legal profession.
How ChatGPT Works: The Model Behind the Bot
A brief introduction to the machine learning models that power ChatGPT
Other Library Guides:
Community Standards & Student Conduct
The use of ChatGPT and other generative AI tools is not expressly prohibited by any one UW policy. However, the use of these technologies may violate certain academic standards.
Use of AI technologies may violate the Law School's academic policies regarding plagiarism. Section 2-101 defines “plagiarism" as "the submission or presentation of someone else's words, composition, research, or expressed ideas, whether published or unpublished, without attribution." Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:
At this time, there is little consensus on whether AI should be cited as a source of information or treated as a co-author. Nor are there clear rules on how to cite AI in the citation style set forth by The Bluebook. Law reviews and law journals have varying approaches to the use of AI and AI authorship. At the very least, many journals require some acknowledgment or disclosure regarding the author's use of AI. Carefully review the submission guidelines for each journal or reach out to their editorial staff for clarification.
The upcoming 22nd edition of The Bluebook (likely to be published in 2025), will likely have helpful guidance. Until then, this is our best guess for how a Bluebook citation to a generative AI response should look, with the full citations below:
| Citation Element | Bluebook Rule(s) | BingChat | Lexis+AI | ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Institutional Author | 18.2.2(a) & 15.1(d) | Microsoft | RELX | OpenAI |
| Title (Descriptive) | 18.2.2(b)(iv) | Response to: "What Is the Official Name of BingChat?" | Response to: "What Is the Official Name of Lexis+AI?" | Response to: "What Is the Official Name of ChatGPT?" |
|
Title Main page |
18.2.2(b)(i) | BingChat | Lexis+AI | ChatGPT |
| Date and Time | 18.2.2(c) | (Jan. 19, 2024, 2:21 PM) | (Jan. 19, 2024, 2:23 PM) | (Jan. 19, 2024, 2:24 PM) |
| URL | There is no URL for a chatbot! BUT you can use the root URL for the application you accessed the chatbot in (18.2.2 (d)) ("Alternatively, the root URL of the site from which information is accessed may be used if ... (2) the source may be obtained only by submitting a form or query | https://www.bing.com/ | https://plusai.lexis.com/lexisplusai/ | https://chat.openai.com/ |
| URL (clarifying parenthetical) | 18.2.2(d) ("If the root URL is used and the site's format is not clear from the rest of the citation, a clarifying parenthetical should be added to explain how to access the specific information to which the citation refers.") | (can be accessed through the Bing website or the Microsoft Edge Browser by selecting "BingChat") | (Select "ask a legal question") | (enter query into "Message ChatGPT" box) |
Full citations:
Microsoft, Response to: "What Is the Official Name of BingChat?”, BingChat (Jan. 19, 2024, 2:21 PM), https://www.bing.com/ (accessed through the Bing website by selecting "BingChat").
RELX, Response to: "What Is the Official Name of Lexis+AI?", Lexis+AI (Jan. 19, 2024, 2:23 PM), https://plusai.lexis.com/lexisplusai/ (select "ask a legal question").
OpenAI, Response to: "What Is the Official Name of ChatGPT?", ChatGPT, (Jan. 19, 2024, 2:24 PM), https://chat.openai.com/ (enter query into "Message ChatGPT" box).
A short article on ChatGPT's inability to properly format citations according to The Bluebook style.
This takes you to the topic page of Law.com.
An article exploring the question of whether AI should be considered an "author" under copyright law.
The Future of Law Firms (and Lawyers) in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
An article describing the impact of AI on the legal profession, the ethical implications raised by the use of AI, and the future of law firms and lawyers in light of the changes brought about by this technology.
For non-AI writing help, you can check out this research guide on writing resources for legal writers.