On 30 June 2026, the Civil Justice Council (“<span class="news-text_medium">CJC</span>”) published an update on the findings from its consultation on the use of artificial intelligence (“<span class="news-text_medium">AI</span>”) in preparing court documents. The consultation opened in February 2026 and closed on 14 April 2026.
The CJC’s AI working group has undertaken an initial analysis of the responses. It will now prepare a draft report containing recommendations for consideration by the CJC, with a final report anticipated later in 2026.
Legal drafting
Respondents generally agreed additional formal AI-related requirements are not required for statements of case, advocacy documents, skeleton arguments and comparable documents. Existing professional responsibility frameworks were regarded as sufficient.
Witness statements
Views differed on the use of AI when preparing witness statements. Respondents stressed the need to preserve the witness’s own recollection and raised concerns AI tools could affect evidence in ways which are not immediately apparent.
The update notes, however, many of these concerns are not unique to AI and overlap with established principles governing witness-statement preparation. The working group will consider carefully whether current safeguards, including statements of truth, disclosure obligations and cross-examination, are adequate.
Subject to finalisation, the working group’s emerging direction is to maintain the existing approach to AI in legal drafting, introduce proportionate transparency in relation to expert evidence and recognise the particular challenges arising for litigants in person. The update notes that expert evidence and litigants in person present distinct issues requiring further attention. The forthcoming draft report will set out the working group’s recommendations. Publication of the final CJC report is expected later in 2026.
