High Court judge flags lawyers for fake case citations

A High Court judge has ordered a barrister and her instructing solicitors to be referred to regulators after finding they included five entirely fake case citations in court submissions - conduct the judge called "appalling professional misbehaviour".

In his judgment, Mr Justice Ritchie found that barrister Sarah Forey, instructed by Haringey Law Centre (for the claimant), knowingly submitted non-existent case authorities in a judicial review claim - including one supposedly from the Court of Appeal.

The judge said the lawyers misled the court, failed to produce copies when asked and wrongly insisted the fake cases were merely "cosmetic errors".

He rejected their explanations as "grossly unprofessional" and said both Forey and the solicitors involved should have self-reported themselves to the Bar Standards Board and Solicitors Regulation Authority.

The court ordered a transcript of the judgment to be sent to both regulators, and imposed a £4,000 wasted costs order split between Forey and Haringey Law Centre.

AI under suspicion

The court was told the only explanation offered by the defendant’s barrister was that the fake cases may have been generated using AI.

The judge said he could not make a formal finding on the point, as Forey had not been cross-examined, but added that if AI had been used and not properly checked, submitting the material would have been negligent.

What the judge said

The judge said he considered "that providing a fake description of five fake cases, including a Court of Appeal case, qualifies quite clearly as professional misconduct."

He said it was right for the council to flag the matter and file a wasted costs application, adding "This sort of behaviour should not be left unexposed. It undermines the integrity of the legal profession and the Bar."