Rhode Island (statewide): In re Amendments to Article V, Rule 1.1 of the Supreme Court Ru…
Suttell, C.J., and Robinson, Lynch Prata, and Long, JJ. · Supreme Court of Rhode Island
Verified October 1, 2026
- Citation
- In re Amendments to Article V, Rule 1.1 of the Supreme Court Rules (Professional Conduct) and Adoption of Interim Generative AI Guidelines (R.I.)
- Order date
- June 17, 2026
Status and scope
No AI-specific filing obligation: in force, but it imposes no disclosure, verification, or use restriction on attorney filings beyond existing rules. It provides: Comment [6] to Rule 1.1 now provides that a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, 'including the benefits and risks associated with existing and developing technology.'
What the instrument provides
- Comment [6] to Rule 1.1 now provides that a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, 'including the benefits and risks associated with existing and developing technology.'
- The Court adopted 'Interim Guidelines for the Ethical Use of Generative AI by Rhode Island Lawyers' and 'Interim Guidelines for the Ethical Use of Generative AI by Rhode Island Judicial Officers.'
- The Guidelines 'neither amend Article V (Rules of Professional Conduct) and Article VI (Code of Judicial Conduct) of the Supreme Court Rules nor carry the force of law. Rather, they are advisory in nature.'
- Before submitting or filing any documents or other work product created by, with, or through a GAI tool, 'a lawyer must review all such outputs for accuracy and correctness, verify citations and statements of fact or law, fix errors and misstatements, and revise false or misleading arguments and positions.'
- The lawyers' Guidelines note that generative AI 'is known to hallucinate, fabricating responses that look legitimate to lawyers, like using fictitious cases', and that lawyers 'must ensure that using GAI meets the duty to provide competent representation.'
Practice areas: state civil, state criminal, state family
What the order does
By order entered June 17, 2026, the Supreme Court of Rhode Island did two things.
It amended Comment [6] to Rule 1.1 (Competence) to read: “To maintain the requisite knowledge and skill, a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with existing and developing technology, engage in continuing study and education, and comply with all continuing legal education requirements to which the lawyer is subject.”
It adopted two sets of Interim Guidelines, one for lawyers and one for judicial officers. The Court stated that these Guidelines “neither amend Article V (Rules of Professional Conduct) and Article VI (Code of Judicial Conduct) of the Supreme Court Rules nor carry the force of law. Rather, they are advisory in nature and serve to guide Rhode Island lawyers and judicial officers in their use of generative artificial intelligence tools in a manner consistent with their professional and ethical responsibilities.”
The lawyers’ Guidelines
The Interim Guidelines for the Ethical Use of Generative AI by Rhode Island Lawyers walk through the Rules of Professional Conduct as applied to generative AI, including competence, diligence, communication, fees, and confidentiality. On competence, they note that generative AI “is known to hallucinate, fabricating responses that look legitimate to lawyers, like using fictitious cases,” and that lawyers “must ensure that using GAI meets the duty to provide competent representation while also being cautious of its risks.”
How the tracker treats it
The entry is listed as advisory. The AI-specific guidance is expressly non-binding, and the Comment [6] amendment addresses technology in general rather than imposing an AI-specific duty.