AI BASED LEGAL RESEARCH – How to Avoid Hallucinations and Improve Accuracy

Dear Colleagues,

Artificial intelligence is now a routine part of legal research—but courts are making it equally clear that delegating judgment to AI is not an option. Sanctions, fee-shifting, disciplinary referrals, and reputational damage are no longer theoretical risks when hallucinated cases or fake citations find their way into filings.

The problem is not that AI is “too powerful.”
The problem is that it must be supervised like any untested expert witness.

Martine Law Firm Training Update 26-01 introduces a simple, courtroom-tested solution:

Cross-Examine the AI before you rely on it or cite it.

This update provides a practical, lawyer-friendly framework for using AI safely and effectively in legal research, including:

• A three-phase protocol (Prepare → Interrogate → Verify) for supervising AI-assisted research
• A cross-examination checklist to expose uncertainty, weak assumptions, and fabricated authority
• Ready-to-copy prompts that force reasoning, demand sources, and build a real verification pathway
• Clear guidance on why this is now an ethics and competence issue, not merely a best practice

Used properly, AI can function like a fast, tireless junior associate. Used improperly, it can become a professional liability. This update is designed to help you capture the speed benefits of AI—without inheriting polished nonsense.

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👉 Click here to read the full, print-ready Training Update 26-01

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If you find this update helpful, please consider forwarding it to colleagues or staff who may benefit from it. And if you haven’t already, visit the Minnesota Judicial Training and Education Website to subscribe and receive future updates directly.

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Special Thanks to Martine Law attorneys Rhiley O’Rourke, Cynthia Smith, Lizzy Cavanaugh, Tyler Martin, Ariana Wright, Dr. Charlene Evans-Smith, and Makayla Stromgen (certified student attorney) for generously contributing their insight and expertise to this update.

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Martine Law Training Updates will continue to focus on key areas of litigation, including Criminal and Family Law, Evidence, Procedure, and Trial Advocacy. With a subscriber base of more than 4,000 attorneys, judges, and legal professionals, these updates reflect our firm’s commitment to the belief that Legal Education is the Heart of the Judiciary. 

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Warm regards,
Alan F. Pendleton
Of Counsel, Martine Law Firm
Director of Mentorship and Education
Former District Court Judge