THAELOSFUTPHREESMTAETECOOFUOKRT OKLAHOMA E L S A STATE T H A O E M R A G COURTS
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Decided: 05/27/2026
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA
NOTICE: THIS OPINION HAS NOT BEEN RELEASED FOR PUBLICATION. UNTIL RELEASED, IT IS SUBJECT TO
REVISION OR WITHDRAWAL.
State of Oklahoma, ex rel., Oklahoma Bar Association, Complainant,
v.
Matthew Brett Reeves, Respondent.
ORIGINAL PROCEEDING FOR ATTORNEY DISCIPLINE
¶0 Pursuant to Rule 7.7 of the Oklahoma Rules of Disciplinary Proceedings, 5 O.S.2011, ch. 1, app. 1-A, Complainant, Oklahoma Bar Association, caused documentation to be transmitted to the Chief Justice of this Court following public reprimand and public censure in the states of Texas, Tennessee, and Alabama based on a sanctions order in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama for using generative artificial intelligence to fabricate citations in two motions.
RESPONDENT PUBLICLY REPRIMANDED.
Gina L. Hendryx, General Counsel, Oklahoma Bar Association, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for Complainant. Matthew B. Reeves, Respondent, Pro Se.
Darby, J.:
I. BACKGROUND
¶1 Pursuant to Rule 7.7 of the Rules Governing Disciplinary Proceedings (RGDP), 5 O.S.2021, ch. 1, app. 1-A, Complainant, Oklahoma Bar Association (OBA) caused documentation in this attorney disciplinary proceeding to be transmitted to the Chief Justice of this Court on December 2, 2025, following the public reprimand of Respondent, Matthew Brett Reeves, in Texas, on November 4, 2025, based upon similar discipline imposed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. On January 14, 2026, the OBA filed notice of additional disciplinary action in another jurisdiction following the public censure of Respondent in Tennessee on December 15, 2025, for the same underlying actions. On March 26, 2026, the OBA filed a second notice of additional disciplinary action in another jurisdiction following the public reprimand of Respondent in Alabama on March 6, 2026, for the same underlying actions. Respondent was admitted to the practice of law in Oklahoma, on September 30, 2003, and is currently in good standing.
¶2 The sanctions order from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama described the facts behind the public reprimand and why the court felt it was imperative to address it so strongly. On behalf of his client, the Alabama Department of Corrections and its officials in various capacities, on May 7, 2025, Respondent filed a motion for leave to take the deposition of an incarcerated person. On May 12, 2025, Respondent filed a motion to compel. The next day the plaintiff in the case filed a response objecting on several grounds, including that
Respondent "appeared to have fabricated citations to legal authority in his motion for leave and motion to compel 'possibly through the use of generative artificial intelligence.'" Sanctions Ord. 4; App'x to Response to Ord. to Show Cause and Br.in Response, attach. A.
¶3 The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama Southern Division explained that there were five problematic citations across the two motions:
[Respondent] cited "Williams v. Asplundh Tree Expert Co., No. 3:05-cv-479, 2006 WL 3343787, at *4 (M.D. Fla. Nov. 17, 2006)" to support the statement that, "General objections are not useful and will not be considered by the Court. Objections should be specific and supported by a detailed explanation." Doc. 182 at 13. Though a case with that style exists, no case with that combination of style and proposition exists. See Williams v. Asplundh Tree Expert Co., No. 3:05-cv-00479-VMC-MCR (M.D. Fla. July 23, 2013); see also Doc. 186 at 4.
[Respondent] cited "United States v. Baker, 539 F.App'x 937, 943 (11th Cir 2013)" as "confirming broad discovery rights under Rules 26 and 30." Doc. 174 at 2. As Plaintiff Johnson pointed out, "[w]hile
United States v. Baker,
529 Fed. Appx.
987 (11th Cir. 2013) is an actual case, it is an appeal challenging a criminal's sentencing enhancement." Doc. 186 at 2. And the case found in the Federal Appendix numbers cited by [Respondent do] not discuss discovery.
See Williams v. Morahan, 539 F. App'x 937 (11th Cir. 2013). [Respondent] cited "Kelley v. City of Birmingham, 2021 WL 1118031, *2 (N.D. Ala. Mar. 24, 2021)" for the proposition that the district court "refus[ed] to delay deposition based on unrelated discovery issues." Doc. 174 at 2. The only case with that style which Plaintiff Johnson (and the court) could find was an Alabama Court of Appeals case from 1939 that dealt with a traffic offense. Doc. 186 at 3;
see Kelley v. City of Birmingham, 28 Ala. App. 644, 189 So. 921 (Ala. Ct. App. 1939). [Respondent] cited "Greer v. Warden, FCC Coleman I, 2020 WL 3060362, at *2 (M.D. Fla. June 9, 2020)" as "rejecting inmate's request to delay deposition until additional discovery was completed." Doc. 174 at 2. This case does not exist, nor does a case exist with similar citation for that proposition of law.
See Doc. 186 at 3. [Respondent] cited "Wilson v. Jackson, 2006 WL 8438651, at *2 (N.D. Ala. Feb. 27, 2006)" with the parenthetical that it was an opinion "granting [a] Rule 30(a)(2)(B) motion and finding no good cause to delay deposition of incarcerated plaintiff." Doc. 174 at 2. There is no such case, and that Westlaw number directs to a maritime personal injury case that does not discuss discovery.
See Douglas v. Ingram Barge Co., No. CV 3:04-0383, 2006 WL 8438651 (S.D.W. Va. Sept. 15, 2006);
see also Doc. 186 at 4.
Sanctions Ord. 4--5, Johnson v. Dunn, Case No. 2:21-cv-1701-AMM (N.D. Ala. S. Div.) (Jul. 23, 2025) (emphasis original).
¶4 Respondent admitted in his response to the order to show cause from the federal court that the citations were hallucinated by ChatGPT. "In simpler terms, the citations were completely made up." Sanctions Ord. 1. The federal court found that the hallucinated citations in the two motions were false statements of law. Sanctions Ord. 25. The court stated
[i]n the light of repeated general warnings from federal courts about the risks of bogus citations generated by AI, as well as the persistent specific warning, policies, and expectations of his colleagues and law firm with respect to AI, [Respondent's] misconduct was particularly egregious. Having been so extensively alerted of the risk that AI will make things up, and having blown through all of his firm's internal controls design to protect court filing from counterfeit citations, [Respondent's] repeated decision to parrot citations generated by AI without verifying even one of them reflects complete and utter disregard for his professional duty of candor. This is recklessness in the extreme, and it is tantamount to bad faith.
Sanctions Ord. 37-38. The federal court recognized, as part of its authority for sanctions, the Alabama Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 3.3 provides that "[a] lawyer shall not knowingly . . . [m]ake a false statement of material fact or law to a tribunal." Sanctions Ord. 28. The court noted it was unclear whether Rule 3.3 applied there because the rule states it applies to "knowing misstatements of law" and the false statements in the case occurred because of failure to verify the hallucinated citations. Id., at 31. Further, the Alabama Supreme Court had "not yet had the opportunity to consider whether Rule 3.3 applies to this specific kind of misconduct." Sanctions Ord. 31. The court found appropriate sanctions were public reprimand, paired with a publication requirement, disqualification in the case, and referral to state licensing authorities. Id., at 50.
¶5 On November 4, 2025, the Board of Disciplinary Appeals appointed by the Supreme Court of Texas issued an Agreed Judgment of Public Reprimand against Respondent. The Texas board laid out the misconduct before the federal court and found reciprocal discipline in the form of a public reprimand to be proper. No specific rule violations were stated.
¶6 On December 15, 2025, the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee issued a public censure against Respondent. The Tennessee censure found that Respondent "failed to act with diligence and caused a delay in his client's case. In addition, [Respondent's] conduct was prejudicial to the administration of justice." Tennessee censured Respondent for violating Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3 (diligence), 3.2 (expediting litigation), and 8.4 (misconduct).
¶7 On March 6, 2026, the Disciplinary Commission of the Alabama State Bar publicly reprimanded Respondent. The Alabama Commission concluded that Respondent violated Rule 1.1. (Competence), 3.3 (Candor Toward the Tribunal), and 8.4(d) and (g) (Misconduct-prejudice to administration of justice and adversely reflects on fitness to practice law) with his actions in federal court. The Alabama Bar also taxed all costs against Respondent.
¶8 On December 3, 2025, and April 3, 2026, we ordered Respondent to show cause why we should not impose a final order of discipline and allowed him to explain his conduct or attempt to mitigate any discipline we might impose. Respondent admitted that he reviewed and revised two filings which were originally drafted by another attorney in his office, a Motion for Leave to Depose Incarcerated Persons and Opposed Motion to Compel. Respondent stated that during his review of both documents, he noted that there were correct propositions of law that were unsupported or had only one citation included. Respondent admitted he used the generative artificial intelligence (AI) known as ChatGPT to obtain five citations which he added to those two documents. Respondent explained that in his prior usage of ChatGPT1 he had not experienced any material inaccuracies in the information he received; and in his haste to improve the drafts, he failed to verify the ChatGPT citations through independent review. Respondent apologized to the judge, the parties, and counsel for his actions, and requested leave to file an amended motion with corrected citations. Since being sanctioned, Respondent has worked with opposing counsel from the case this occurred within in order to develop a program to educate law students regarding the risks of AI.
¶9 Respondent received a sanctions order in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama in Frankie Johnson v. Jefferson Dunn, et al., Case No. 2:21-cv-1701-AMM on July 23, 2025, for failing to verify the five citations he obtained through ChatGPT and included in two filed documents. Respondent self-reported the sanctions order to all states he was admitted to practice law in on July 25, 2025. In Texas, Respondent agreed to the public reprimand, thereby foregoing a hearing. The Texas Board of Disciplinary Appeals issued an agreed reciprocal discipline action based on the sanctions from Alabama, not any separate action or misbehavior. Respondent does not contest this Court's consideration of the Texas reprimand for reciprocal discipline.
¶10 Respondent disputes that the Tennessee censure lacks an adequate or reasonable legal or evidentiary basis to demonstrate that he violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 3.2, or 8.4. Supp. Resp. to Ord. to Show Cause 3. Respondent argues that contrary to Oklahoma RGDP 7.7, the Tennessee censure does not supply a factual or analytical basis sufficient to presume the validity of the finding and conclusions in the censure or to support reciprocal or additional discipline. According to the OBA, Respondent did not contest the imposition of public censure in Tennessee and did not appeal the decision of the board.
¶11 Respondent disputes the Alabama State Bar's public reprimand for this same act, which they found to be in violation of Alabama Rules 1.1 (Competence), 3.3 (Candor Toward the Tribunal), and 8.4(d) and (g) (Misconduct). Respondent asserts that nothing in the reprimand demonstrates Respondent's lack of legal knowledge or incompetence in filing the two motions. Respondent claims that the motions did not alter the procedural posture of the case, delay its resolution, or prejudice any party. He further asserts that he did not attempt or intend to engage in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice. Respondent stated that he did not have actual knowledge of any hallucinated citations in the motions before filing them. Second Supp. Response to Ord. to Show Cause 3. Respondent maintains that nothing in the Alabama reprimand reflects clear and convincing evidence of any rule violation. The OBA noted that in Alabama, an attorney may accept the reprimand, request a reconsideration, or refuse
1
Respondent explained that his prior usage of ChatGPT was mainly for personal reasons such as researching diet after surgery, family trips, and colleges for his child. App'x to Response to Ord. to Show Cause, Attach. H; Tr. of Show Cause Hearing 21:22--22:12, May 21, 2025 (N.D. Ala. S. Div.). Respondent eventually began to occasionally use ChatGPT to perform a general search on background for witnesses he was going to depose or to research existing "policies in the corrections world" in order to help draft policies for correctional institutions. Id., at 22:12--22:25. Respondent testified that he primarily used Westlaw's CoCounsel product professionally. See id., at 22:11--12.