Chief Justice Roberts’ year-end report looks at the future of AI

• Chief Justice John Roberts announced the Supreme Court’s year-end review.
• He has written extensively about the potential of AI in the courtroom.
• Notably, he sidestepped any discussion of Supreme Court ethics.

On Sunday, Chief Justice John Roberts highlighted its promises and shortcomings. Artificial Intelligence in Federal Courts In its annual report, it made no mention of Supreme Court ethics or legal controversies involving Donald Trump.

Roberts described artificial intelligence as the “newest technological frontier” and discussed the pros and cons of computer-generated content in the legal profession. His remarks came just days after the latest instance in which a fake AI-generated legal citation was published in official court records in a case involving a former Trump lawyer. michael coen.

“It’s always a bad idea,” Roberts wrote in his year-end report, noting that “any use of AI requires caution and humility.”

At the same time, the Chief Justice acknowledged that the introduction of AI could make it much easier for people with less money to access the courts. “These tools have the welcome potential to alleviate the disparity between available resources and urgent needs in our court system,” Roberts wrote.

But what is notable is what Roberts omitted from his year-end report on the Supreme Court, which has been plagued by questions about its ethics and the code of conduct the court adopted for the first time.

Ethical questions arose from a series of reports from the United States. propublica scrutinize the gift judge clarence thomas received from ~ but could not disclose Harlan Crowea billionaire Republican donor.

The ethical dilemma spread to other judges as well. Samuel Alito He was criticized for his extravagant fishing trip with a billionaire who is fighting against student loan relief. Sonia Sotomayor She was accused of using her position to pressure institutions that had previously held lectures into purchasing her books.Even Mr. Roberts has since come under intense scrutiny. business insider It was revealed that his wife had made millions of dollars recruiting for law firms, one of which was filed in the Supreme Court.

The Code of Conduct finally adopted by the Court this year has been criticized for: toothless, That’s because it only suggests, not requires, that judges recuse themselves from cases involving friends and family.

The country is also at the start of an election year, and it seems likely that the courts will be involved in some way in the ongoing criminal case against Trump and efforts to preserve the country. former republican president Removed from the 2024 ballot.

Roberts, along with his eight colleagues, rarely discusses cases before the Supreme Court or cases that are likely to go to the Supreme Court. In past reports, he has advocated for increased security and pay increases for federal judges, praised judges and their assistants for their response to the coronavirus pandemic, and highlighted other aspects of technological change in courtrooms. I’ve been doing it.

Roberts once famously compared judges to umpires who call balls and strikes but don’t dictate the rules. In his latest report, he turned to another sport, tennis, and argued that technology will not replace referees anytime soon.

In many tennis tournaments, optical technology, rather than human linesmen, currently decides whether a 130 mph serve is in or out. “In contrast, legal decisions often involve gray areas that still require the application of human judgment,” Roberts wrote. There is.

Looking ahead to the growing use of artificial intelligence in the courtroom, Roberts said, “I predict that human judges will be around for some time.But I have the same confidence that the use of artificial intelligence at the trial level, especially at the trial level, will continue to improve.” We predict that the following will be significantly affected.” Ai. ”

Supreme Court representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider outside of regular business hours.