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Are Your Community Association Attorneys Using AI to Perform Legal Services for You? Hoffman Law LLC is Not (well, at least not yet) … and … Here is Why.
August 25, 2024
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, has seemingly become an everyday term these days. People are using AI to write resumes, create rough drafts of stories based on variables that the end-user inputs, and also perform all types of tasks for personal and professional use … and … it’s evolving (quickly!). But, as I learned from an awesome acronym from my computer programming (go Basic, Fortran and Pascal!) classes way back in the stone age … GIGO. Wait, GIGO? What does this mean? Quite simply: “garbage in, garbage out“.
In the context of AI utilized in the provision of legal services, it means that the information and data that AI is gathering and aggregating from the internet for attorneys to use in real-world (i.e., not “AI-world”) court filings is oftentimes replete with utter and absolute garbage – including but not limited to absolutely incorrect legal analyses and [caselaw] summaries and citations, and other big “no-nos” for attorneys – which, as you may have already guessed, is a massive problem not just for attorneys and their law firms, but also for the clients of these lawyers and law firms.
About a week ago, on August 19, 2024, the Honorable Karoline Mehalchick, a United States District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, issued a Civil Practice Order entitled “Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence”, which provides as follows:
Increased use of Artificial Intelligence (“AI”), particularly Generative AI(including, but not limited to, OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Google’s Bard), in the practice of law raises a number of practical concerns for the Court, including the risk that the generative AI tool might generate legally or factually incorrect information, or that it might create unsupported or nonexistent legal citations. As such, any party, whether appearing pro se or through counsel, who utilizes any generative AI tool in the preparation of any document to be filed in any matter pending before Judge Mehalchick, must include with the document a Certificate of Use of Generative AI in which the party must disclose and certify:
- The specific AI tool that was used;
- The portions of the filing prepared by the AI program; and
- That a person has checked the accuracy of any portion of the document generated by AI, including all citations and legal authority.
Failure to comply with this Order may result in sanctions. Further, all parties and counsel are directed to review the conclusions on pages 15 and 16 of the Joint Formal Opinion of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and Philadelphia Bar Association regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence and be mindful of their ethical and professional obligations before this Court. (A link to the information provided in the Order can be found here. Contact us if you would like a courtesy copy of the actual Civil Practice Order Issued by the Court).
What exactly does this mean? It means that if your Association’s attorneys/law firms are representing your Association in a matter in front of Judge Mehalchick, they must certify that AI was used (and which type(s)), identify which portions of the filing are prepared by AI, and that someone (a real live person – go figure!) checked the accuracy of any portion of the filing prepared by AI, including all citations and legal authority. A failure to do so may result in sanctions.
While this Civil Practice Order only applies to matters in front of Judge Mehalchick in the [federal] District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Community Association attorneys, and their clients, throughout all of Pennsylvania, as well as virtually (no pun intended) in every other jurisdiction in this country, should understand that all of this is coming to a courthouse near you … and soon. Judges do not want to deal with GIGO filings in their courtrooms, so attorneys and law firms should take heed of the risks associated with the use of AI in legal practice – NOW.
Finally, for my fellow Pennsylvania Community Association attorneys, it is highly recommended that you listen to Judge Mehalchick and review pages 15 and 16 of the Joint Formal Opinion of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and Philadelphia Bar Association regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence before you engage in the use of AI in Pennsylvania.
– Edward Hoffman, Jr., Esq., CCAL
BREACH OF PERSONAL INFORMATION IN COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONS – UPDATED JULY 2024
If you’ve been paying attention, Hoffman Law LLC previously advised of updates to the Pennsylvania Breach of Personal Information Notification Act” (“BPINA”) in 2022/2023 in a prior Blog post found here. This Blog post is an update to same.
NEW:
Pennsylvania Senate Bill 824 (SB 824) changed the BPINA in numerous ways, and the changes become effective on September 26, 2024. We will summarize the recent changes provided by SB 824 below, not in its entirety, but as it may apply to/impact Community Associations.
1.NOTIFICATION OF BREACH. BPINA used to require notification to credit reporting agencies when 1,000 or more PA residents were impacted in the event of a breach. SB 824 brings that number of impacted residents down to 500 or more PA residents.
2. CREDIT REPORTING/MONITORING. SB 824 requires that qualifying entities provide impacted PA residents with access to a credit report and credit monitoring services, free of charge, if the following apply:
a. there was a breach of the “security of the systems” as defined by PA law; and
b. the data accessed as a result of the breach included the individual’s name (first and last name, or first initial and last name) in combination with their SS #, bank acct. # or driver’s license/state identification card #.
If the two aforementioned requirements have both been triggered, the Ass’n must provide the impacted PA individual with access to an independent credit report from a consumer reporting agency if the individual is otherwise not able to obtain an independent credit report free of charge. The Ass’n must also provide the impacted PA individual with an offer of twelve (12) months of credit monitoring services, and advise that same is available free of cost.
3. PA Attorney General. SB 824 requires that an Ass’n notify the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office (PA AG) whenever it provides notice of a breach under PA law to more than 500 residents of the Commonwealth (used to be 1000!). The notification to the PA AG must be provided at the same time of the notice provided to impacted individuals, and must include the following information (if known at that time):
- Ass’n name/location;
- Date of breach;
- Summary of incident that led to breach;
- Estimated total # of impacted individuals; and
- Estimated total # of impacted residents of PA.
Finally, we still recommend that community associations review BPINA as amended, as Act No. 33 of 2024 (June 28, 2024), which can be found here, and discuss with their counsel, managing agents, and/or any service providers that handle personal information (especially association software providers), and confirm proper insurance coverage with association insurance professionals. As it relates to insurance, community associations should obtain adequate cyber-liability insurance to offset risk and cover a breach incident (it is noted that the cost of proper notification is tremendous, especially if the breach (now) involves notification to over 500 persons at one time (because all consumer credit reporting agencies must also be notified, as well as the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office).
– Edward Hoffman, Jr., Esq., CCAL
