S.D. Ind.: Practices and Procedures of Judge Justin R. Olson, Section K: Disclosure and U…

What the procedures require

Section K of Judge Justin R. Olson’s Practices and Procedures (March 2026), “Disclosure and Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI),” provides that “All counsel and pro se parties must disclose the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) to generate, draft, or revise the content of documents submitted to the Court or chambers.” If AI was used in this way, “signing counsel and/or pro se parties are REQUIRED to sign and file a Certificate Regarding Use of Artificial Intelligence,” stating:

“This document was generated with the assistance of [identify AI tool name]. I hereby certify under penalty of perjury that, despite reliance on an AI tool, I have independently reviewed this document to confirm the accuracy and legitimacy of all cited authority and any characterization or summary thereof pursuant to Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.”

The section cautions that mistake, lack of technical expertise, and time constraints “are typically not recognized by the Court as a good faith excuse,” and that briefs supported by AI-generated caselaw “are unacceptable.” Failure to comply “may result in appropriate sanctions, up to and including dismissal and/or default judgment.”

Scope

The trigger is generative AI used “to generate, draft, or revise the content” of a document, narrower than disclosure rules that reach AI used “in any capacity.” The certificate closely follows the template used by Northern District of Georgia judges, adapted to focus on “cited authority and any characterization or summary thereof.”

Supplemental notice to pro se litigants

Judge Olson has also entered a separate supplemental notice to pro se litigants on the use of artificial intelligence in individual cases, including Dennison v. Caudill, No. 2:26-cv-255 (Dkt. 8, April 13, 2026), and Harris v. Wray, No. 1:26-cv-1342 (Dkt. 7, June 24, 2026). His later orders in those cases describe the notice and the Practices and Procedures as requiring “all litigants to tell the Court if they used artificial intelligence (‘AI’) to help write their complaint, a motion, or any other documents they file into the case,” with a signed statement at the end of the document in the same words as the certificate above. See Dennison v. Caudill, ECF 9 (S.D. Ind. Apr. 23, 2026) and Harris v. Wray, ECF 17 (S.D. Ind. Aug. 14, 2026). Each notice applies in the case where it is entered.

Primary source

Practices and Procedures of Judge Justin R. Olson, March 2026 (PDF)