D. Colo.: D. Colo. Standing Order for Civil Cases (Judge Crews): Certification Re: Use of…
Judge S. Kato Crews · U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
Verified September 30, 2026
- Citation
- D. Colo. Standing Order for Civil Cases (Judge Crews): Certification Re: Use of Generative AI for Drafting
- Order date
- January 1, 2026
Summary
Every substantive motion, including but not necessarily limited to motions under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12, 56, and 65, and the corresponding response and reply, shall contain an AI Certification regarding the use, or non-use, of generative AI in preparing the filing.
What does the order require?
- Every substantive motion, including but not necessarily limited to motions under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12, 56, and 65, and the corresponding response and reply, shall contain an AI Certification regarding the use, or non-use, of generative AI in preparing the filing.
- The preparer must certify either that (1) no portion of the filing was drafted by AI, or that (2) any language drafted by AI (even if later edited by a human) was personally reviewed by the filer or another human for accuracy and all legal citations are to actual, non-fictitious cases or cited authority.
- The Court takes no position on attorneys' use of generative AI in their filings, other than it is imperative that attorneys who use AI double (and triple) check AI's work to avoid filing documents with erroneous and fictitious case law or other references that mislead the Court and waste time.
- The Court will strike any filing (without prejudice) from a party who fails to include the AI Certification in the above-mentioned motions.
- The AI Certification does not count against any page limitations.
Practice areas: federal civil
What the order requires
Judge S. Kato Crews of the District of Colorado embeds an AI Certification requirement inside Section C.2 of his Standing Order for Civil Cases. The standing order was revised most recently on January 1, 2026, but the AI Certification provision dates from December 2024, when Crews reworded it to clarify that he is not opposed to attorney use of generative AI: he simply wants to deter false citations.
- Scope of motions covered. The certification is required on every substantive motion (including but not limited to Rule 12, 56, and 65 motions) plus every corresponding response and reply.
- Two-option certification. The preparer must certify either (a) no portion of the filing was drafted by AI, or (b) any AI-drafted language (even if later edited) was personally reviewed by the filer or another human for accuracy and all legal citations are to actual, non-fictitious cases.
- Page limit carve-out. The AI Certification does not count against any page limitations (for summary-judgment motions the order lists it with the cover page, table of contents, signature block, certificate of service, and conferral certification as excluded from the page limits).
- Sanction. Filings missing the certification will be stricken without prejudice.
How Judge Crews’s approach differs from Starr-style orders
Unlike the Brantley Starr (N.D. Tex.) prototype, which front-loaded a one-time advance certification at case opening (Judge Starr has since withdrawn it in favor of N.D. Tex. Local Civil Rule 7.2(f)), Crews’s order requires a per-filing certification on every substantive motion, response, and reply. The trade-off: more recurring paperwork, but the certification is fresh each filing and does not eat into page limits, so the practical burden is small.
Practitioner workflow
For any matter assigned to Judge Crews, build the AI Certification into your motion template now. The certification can sit at the end of the document outside the page count.
Scope
Civil cases assigned to Judge Crews only. Other District of Colorado judges have separate standing orders.
Primary source
Standing Order for Civil Cases (PDF, revised Jan. 1, 2026): http://www.cod.uscourts.gov/Portals/0/Documents/Judges/SKC/SKC_Standing_Order_Civil_Cases.pdf