N.D. Ill.: Artificial Intelligence Standing Order (Magistrate Judge Jeffrey N. Cole, N.D…
Magistrate Judge Jeffrey N. Cole · U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Verified May 8, 2026
- Citation
- Artificial Intelligence Standing Order (Magistrate Judge Jeffrey N. Cole, N.D. Ill.)
- Order date
- July 21, 2023
Summary
Any party using AI in the preparation of materials submitted to the court must disclose in the filing that an AI tool was used to conduct legal research and/or was used in any way in the preparation of the submitted document.
What does the order require?
- Any party using AI in the preparation of materials submitted to the court must disclose in the filing that an AI tool was used to conduct legal research and/or was used in any way in the preparation of the submitted document.
- Reliance on AI does not satisfy Rule 11's 'reasonable inquiry' standard.
- The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, including Rule 11, apply to AI-prepared filings.
- Filing certification represents that the filer has read and analyzed all cited authorities to ensure they exist.
Practice areas: federal civil
What the order requires
Magistrate Judge Cole’s standing order is among the earliest federal-court AI rules (July 2023). It pairs disclosure (filer must disclose AI use in the filing itself) with verification (filer’s certification represents that they have read and analyzed all cited authorities to ensure they exist) and an explicit Rule 11 anchor (reliance on AI does not satisfy the reasonable-inquiry standard).
The order is unusual among 2023-vintage AI rules in three ways. First, it explicitly addresses the “reasonable inquiry” prong of Rule 11, anticipating the Mata v. Avianca framing that became dominant. Second, it requires a representation that cited authorities have been “read and analyzed,” not merely “verified” or “checked,” establishing a higher diligence standard. Third, it sweeps any AI use (“AI” without a “generative” qualifier) rather than limiting itself to generative AI specifically.
The PDF metadata shows the file was generated July 20, 2023 in Corel WordPerfect, corroborating R&G’s 2023-07-21 attribution as the operative signing date.
Quotable language
“Any party using AI in the preparation of materials submitted to the court must disclose in the filing that an AI tool was used to conduct legal research and/or was used in any way in the preparation of the submitted document.”
“Parties should not assume that mere reliance on an AI tool will be presumed to constitute reasonable inquiry.”