Bombay High Court Quashes Order After Customs Department Relies On Fabricated AI Judgments

The Bombay High Court quashed a department order after finding that the Customs Department based its case on fake, artificial intelligence (AI)-generated Supreme Court judgments. Highlighting the dangers of unverified technology, the court referenced a Supreme Court observation stating that artificial intelligence can act as training wheels, but putting it in the pilot's seat is both imprudent and dangerous. Specific names of the litigants, case docket numbers, and the date of the quashed order are not stated in the source text.

Legal research relies on established judicial precedents and verified statutory interpretations to ensure consistency and rule of law across adjudications. In recent years, generative artificial intelligence tools have been adopted to draft documents and research case law, though these models occasionally hallucinate non-existent citations; relying on unverified outputs compromises administrative decisions and violates due process. Legal practitioners, compliance officers, and departmental authorities must independently verify every case citation and judgment reference through authenticated law reporters before submitting them in judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings.

Tax professionals should audit their research workflows to ensure all precedent-based arguments are cross-checked against official court portals. Bottom line: blindly trusting artificial intelligence for legal citations exposes your practice and clients to catastrophic legal risks and overturned orders.