S.D. Cal. (Bankruptcy): S.D. Cal. Bankruptcy General Order No. 210, In Re: Filings Using…

What the order requires

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California entered General Order No. 210 on November 18, 2025, with an effective date of January 1, 2026. It is signed by Chief Judge Christopher B. Latham and Judge J. Barrett Marum, and it is district-wide for the bankruptcy court. The operative text reads:

Effective January 1, 2026, any pleading, motion, or paper (whether moving, opposing, or in reply) that the filer prepared in any aspect by using a generative artificial intelligence (“AI”) program must be accompanied by an attestation or certification signed by the filer:

• Identifying the AI program used; and
• Certifying that the filer checked the document for factual and legal accuracy using print reporters, traditional legal databases, or other reliable means.

This General Order applies to all filers – whether attorneys or self-represented litigants.

Rule 9011 of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure continues to apply to all documents filed with the Court. Furthermore, the Court construes each filing as a certification by the person signing a filed document of compliance with Rule 9011(b).

Three things to note:

1. Tool identification is mandatory. GO 210 requires the filer to name the specific AI program used, not merely state that AI was used.
2. Verification standard is prescriptive. The accuracy check must be done using “print reporters, traditional legal databases, or other reliable means.” This wording tracks the certification in Judge Brantley Starr’s 2023 order (“print reporters or traditional legal databases”) and is unusual in bankruptcy practice.
3. Rule 9011 anchor with implicit certification. The order does not displace Bankruptcy Rule 9011 (the bankruptcy analog of Civil Rule 11). It also construes each filing as an implicit Rule 9011(b) certification, meaning the Rule 9011 violation analysis runs in parallel with the GO 210 attestation requirement.

Implementation form

The court has issued Local Form CSD 5013 to implement the certification (https://www.casb.uscourts.gov/sites/casb/files/documents/forms/CSD5013_2026-01-01_R1.pdf). The general order does not itself require the form; practitioners may wish to use it rather than drafting their own attestation.

Practitioner workflow

S.D. Cal. bankruptcy matters: any motion, opposition, or reply prepared “in any aspect” with generative AI requires an attestation identifying the tool and certifying the verification step. The “in any aspect” framing is broad and likely captures common drafting workflows where AI is used to summarize a transcript, generate a first-draft factual recitation, or produce boilerplate. Firms may wish to default to filing the attestation when generative AI was used at any stage.

The order also construes each filing as the signer’s certification of compliance with Rule 9011(b), so the Rule 9011 analysis runs alongside the GO 210 attestation requirement.

Scope

District-wide for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California. Applies to all filings (attorneys and pro se) in all bankruptcy matters in the district.

Primary source

Court news page: https://www.casb.uscourts.gov/news/general-order-210-filings-using-generative-artificial-intelligence

GO 210 PDF: https://www.casb.uscourts.gov/sites/casb/files/documents/general-orders/General%20Order%20210_2025-11-18.pdf