AI slop - the telltale text drafted by generative AI tools - is everywhere. Four years after the public release of ChatGPT, it has seeped into every type of interaction, including court filings, responsive pleadings, and judicial decisions. The problem has grown so pervasive that more than 2,000 instances of court filings containing hallucinated cases and inaccurate information have been documented, along with at least eight court orders containing hallucinated cases.
The word patterns, weak grammatical structures, and vague descriptions become familiar over time. One sentence in, and you immediately know you're ingesting computerized mush, even if you're not sure how you know. AI-generated communications are a lot like Justice Stewart's definition of pornography: you know them when you see them.
The tells of AI-generated text
On a second pass, the AI-isms jump out. The sentence patterns and word choices are unmistakable. Some AI quirks, like frequent em dashes and listing concepts in triplets, were writing techniques that many professional writers relied on before the AI era. Other patterns that crop up repeatedly include "It's not X, it's Y" framing, the constant use of "quietly" as an adverb, and words like underscore, foster, gap, lag, and delve.
When generative AI was first released, the constant use of "crucial" was a common pet peeve. Now there are so many AI-preferred words cropping up that it's hard to keep track. But the problem isn't AI itself. It's the end user.
User responsibility and the path forward
The technology is ubiquitous and improving exponentially. AI is also incredibly easy to use, so it's no wonder people turn to it in a pinch. However, there are ways to use AI to assist with writing that don't lead to AI slop. Like any other type of technology, you have to educate yourself about AI's capabilities, benefits, and drawbacks before using it. Then you must be strategic about incorporating it into your writing process and deliberate about reviewing and editing all output.
For legal professionals, this caution is especially urgent. The documented cases of hallucinated citations in court filings represent a direct threat to the integrity of legal proceedings. Resources like AI for Legal and the AI Learning Path for Paralegals can help legal teams understand where AI fits into document review and research workflows without compromising accuracy.
Because people aren't doing that, AI slop is ruining the internet and, increasingly, public discourse. Studies show that people have begun to incorporate AI word choices and sentence structures into their daily speech. The line between reality and fiction is blurring, and there's no going back.
Why this matters for legal professionals
AI slop is now a professional liability issue. When attorneys file documents containing hallucinated cases, they risk sanctions, damage to their reputation, and harm to their clients. Every legal professional who uses AI tools - or reviews work produced by others who do - needs to recognize the tells of AI-generated text and verify every citation, every case name, and every factual claim. The burden of accuracy hasn't shifted to the technology. It remains with the lawyer who signs the filing.
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