MA Court Rules AI Searches Must be Turned Over in Discovery

The message from Massachusetts Courts is clear: Beware doing legal research/strategizing using AI.  For the first time, Massachusetts Courts have spoken, and they have adopted the recent New York ruling in Heppner finding that a person’s private use of AI to do legal evaluations of their claims is discoverable by the other side in litigation (see our excellent summary of Heppner at this link).

The case is Shealy, et al. v. Seaside Investments, et al., and a dispute arose after the defendants demanded Shealy turn over all queries, documents, and results he and his partner had submitted and obtained about his case using AI.  Specifically, he had sent documents to his partner to analyze using ChatGPT.  Shealy attempted to argue that the AI queries were protected by “work product protection” since they were created “in anticipation of litigation.”

Instead, Judge Debra A. Squires-Lee adopted the ruling in Heppner for the first time in Massachusetts, finding that the AI queries and results were not protected from discovery.  It was critical to Judge Squires-Lee’s findings that no attorney had instructed Shealy or his partner to do the searches, which she found are only protected when done by or at the behest of the person’s attorney.

Shealy is a watershed case in Massachusetts that establishes, for the first time, that AI searches are generally discoverable by the other side in litigation.  Accordingly, litigants should be very wary of doing their own legal AI research outside the instruction of their attorney, as anything asked, submitted, or answered may have to be turned over as part of the litigation process.

More than ever, it is critical to reach out to an attorney right away if you believe you may have a case, as they will be in the best position to protect your interests.  If you, or anyone you know, has suffered an injury in a car accident, bike accident, wrongful death, slip and fall, or other incident involving an injury, please give us a call at 617-383-3542 for a free consultation with an experienced attorney who may be able to help with your claim.