Chicago Housing Authority Lawyer Cites Fake Case in Filing

In the latest twist to a lead-poisoning case that roiled the Chicago Housing Authority, the law firm defending the agency cited a fictitious court case in a post-trial motion generated by ChatGPT, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The blunder, disclosed in a recent hearing, may open the door to sanctions, and it further complicates the CHA’s efforts to overturn a $24 million jury verdict.

That verdict, issued in January, found the CHA liable for injuries sustained by two children due to lead-based paint at a Rogers Park apartment. Though the property had long been managed by real estate firms the Habitat Company and East Lake Management Group, both were cleared of liability and later settled with plaintiffs for smaller amounts. Habitat then sued the CHA for breach of contract and legal malpractice, alleging the agency’s missteps during the trial cost it money and reputation.

The AI-related error centers on a motion filed by CHA’s outside counsel at Goldberg Segalla, which referenced a fabricated Illinois Supreme Court case called Mack v. Anderson in an attempt to challenge the original ruling.

The case does not exist, and the firm has since admitted that partner Danielle Malaty used ChatGPT to draft the motion without verifying its citations. Malaty was fired, and the firm said it has since updated its AI policies and re-educated its staff.

Cook County Circuit Judge Thomas Cushing allowed plaintiffs’ attorneys to move for sanctions, calling a special hearing on the matter. Goldberg Segalla has already billed CHA nearly $390,000 in the case, but the agency said it will not pay for any time or expenses related to the AI filing.

The CHA remains without a permanent CEO and is weathering fallout from its lead hazard scandal. Habitat ended its decades-long relationship with the CHA after alleging the agency failed to protect it in court, a rare and messy breakup in Chicago’s public housing landscape.

The authority postponed a board meeting Tuesday to Aug. 4, when it is expected to consider Mayor Brandon Johnson’s nomination of Alderman Walter Burnett for CEO.

Goldberg Segalla isn’t the first law firm to have included ChatGPT-written text in a legal filing, nor is it even the only one to do so for a housing authority. A Houston Housing Authority housing voucher-related legal brief, filed in court last month by Fulton Law Group, included multiple fabricated case citations as well.

— Judah Duke