Suit: Woman Fired Lawyer on ChatGPT's Advice

OpenAI is facing a novel accusation in federal court: that its chatbot is effectively playing lawyer without a license. Nippon Life Insurance Company of America sued the ChatGPT maker in Chicago, claiming the AI tool encouraged a former disability claimant to undo a settled case, then helped her bombard the court with baseless filings, per Reuters. "ChatGPT is not an attorney," the complaint states, arguing that even if the chatbot could pass a bar exam, it has never been admitted to practice in any US jurisdiction.

The insurer says the claimant, who isn't a defendant in the case, had settled her original case, which was dismissed with prejudice, so it could not be filed again. ChatGPT essentially told the woman the settlement wasn't final, as her lawyer had informed her, so she fired the lawyer and used the chatbot to draft pointless motions and a new lawsuit, which cost Nippon some $300,000, the complaint states, per NewsNation. Nippon wants a judge to declare that OpenAI violated Illinois' ban on the unauthorized practice of law and is seeking $300,000 in compensatory damages plus $10 million in punitive damages. OpenAI calls the lawsuit meritless, noting it has since updated its policies to prohibit using ChatGPT for legal advice.