The key facts
- Lawsuits created with ChatGPT contain fabricated court decisions and non-existent legal norms
- In Baden-Württemberg, urgent cases grew by 60% and pension disputes by 80%; in Bavaria, pension lawsuits grew by 60% in the first half of 2026
- Germany's Ministry of Justice is preparing a reform of procedural legislation
A flood of AI-created lawsuits
German courts have seen a sharp increase in the number of lawsuits prepared with the help of artificial intelligence, Bild reports. ChatGPT allows citizens to create lengthy legal documents in seconds, but these often contain fabricated court decisions and references to non-existent legal norms. One court received a lawsuit of 4,500 pages.
Growing workload on the courts
The workload has grown especially on social courts, which citizens can approach without a lawyer. According to Bild, in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg the number of urgent court cases grew by 60% over a year, and disputes over social pensions by 80%. In Bavaria, in the first half of 2026, the number of pension-related lawsuits increased by 60%. At the same time, judges are forced to study the incoming documents even if most of the text is not relevant to the case.
A reform is being prepared
Against the backdrop of the growing workload, Germany's Ministry of Justice is preparing a reform of procedural legislation. As part of the reform, requirements for the length and formatting of court documents may be established. In addition, it is envisaged that the courts themselves will be able to use artificial intelligence to analyse and shorten lengthy filings.
