Published opinion, 21 August 2026 · source · PDF · 16 pages
We conclude that Capital Standard's arguments lack merit, and we affirm the judgment in all respects without further comment. We write, however, to sanction Capital Standard's counsel, Kenneth Keefe, for his rampant use of hallucinated citations to legal authority in his amended initial brief and subsequent reply brief and to explain the rationale for the sanctions that we impose.1 It's been three years since the release of the widely publicized decision in Mata v. Avianca, Inc., 678 F.
Blanche, 177 F.4th 1014, 1024 (9th Cir. 2026) (citing Magesh et al., Hallucination-Free? Assessing the Reliability of Leading AI Legal Research Tools, 22 J.
216, 221 (2025)). "Fabrications are instances in which the generative AI tool provides cases or quotations that do not exist at all." Id. (citing 22 Empirical Legal Stud. at 221, 230).
What's more, it's been the focus of a mushrooming number of decisions from multiple Florida district courts of appeal.3 In short, at this point in time, it defies belief for a practicing 2 Damien Charlotin, a French attorney and lecturer in "legal data analysis," has developed a database referenced by multiple courts that tracks court orders related to AI-hallucinations. AI Hallucination Cases, Damien Charlotin, https://www.damiencharlotin.com/hallucinations (last visited Aug. 7, 2026).
7, 2026). As of this opinion, Charlotin has identified 497 cases in the United States involving attorneys' reliance on AI hallucinations. Id.
3d 1185, 1188 (Fla. 3d DCA 2024) (imposing sanctions on a pro se litigant for submitting a brief that included "fictitious case law"). 4 attorney to plead ignorance of the risks of relying on generative AI without double-checking the results.
Capital Standard's original initial brief was replete with nonexistent quotations and purported statements of law with wholly inaccurate cites.
5 transaction" and that "[r]atification occurs when a party, through its actions or inactions, affirms a transaction or fails to repudiate it within a reasonable time." • Serving up nonexistent quotes—complete with purported pincites—such as, "[fundamental error] goes to the foundation of the case or the merits of the cause of action and is equivalent to a denial of due process," citing Hart Properties, Inc. v.