Overview
- Senior judges and state leaders, speaking Saturday at the 22nd Biennial State-Level Conference of Judicial Officers in Bengaluru, set out guardrails for how courts should use artificial intelligence.
- Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said AI can speed research and case management but must not replace human judgment, urging judges to independently verify AI outputs after recent instances of fabricated precedents and misleading filings.
- Justice B. V. Nagarathna said judicial independence now means freedom from algorithmic influence, reported a fake citation titled “Mercy vs. Mankind” reaching her bench, and suggested advocates certify that cited judgments are authentic.
- Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah renewed a call for a Supreme Court bench in South India to ease access and warned that deepfakes and synthetic data could force courts to revisit what counts as reliable evidence.
- Courts are testing AI tools as the Supreme Court and high courts consider ethical guidelines, with speakers pressing for structured training and strong data protections to safeguard litigants’ privacy, liberty and dignity.