Prososki v. Regan
SC Nebraska · Mar 20, 2026
What happened in this matter?
The Nebraska Supreme Court struck the appellant's brief and dismissed the appeal due to the inclusion of numerous fictitious citations and fabricated quotations. Additionally, the court referred the appellant's counsel to the Counsel for Discipline for investigation into potential ethical violations regarding the duty of candor and professional conduct.
- Why the court cared
- The court reasoned that submitting a brief with fictitious authority violates the duty of candor and constitutes professional misconduct. It held that actual intent to deceive is not required; conscious avoidance or failure to adequately review and verify the law satisfies the 'knowingly' requirement for disciplinary purposes. The court determined that the widespread nature of the fictitious authority necessitated striking the brief and dismissing the appeal to protect the integrity of the judicial process.
- Why it matters now
- Fabricated citations in a state-supreme-court brief end appeals and trigger bar referral; verify every cite against the reporter.
Why this matter is tracked
The Nebraska Supreme Court addressed an appeal where the appellant's counsel submitted a brief containing numerous fictitious case citations, fabricated quotations, and misrepresented legal holdings. Counsel attributed the errors to technical issues and denied using generative AI, though the court noted the explanation lacked credibility. The court determined that the submission of such a brief violated the duty of candor and constituted professional misconduct, regardless of whether the errors were intentional or the result of conscious avoidance. Consequently, the court ordered the appellant's brief stricken, dismissed the appeal, and referred counsel to the Counsel for Discipline for investigation. The court emphasized that attorneys have an independent duty to verify the accuracy of all legal authority presented in filings.
Fabricated citations in a state-supreme-court brief end appeals and trigger bar referral; verify every cite against the reporter.
Record details
What the record establishes about AI use
Counsel denied AI use; court noted it was unclear if AI was used.
Appellate review of a dissolution decree; the court struck the appellant's brief and dismissed the appeal following a motion by the appellee highlighting fictitious authority.
Correction behavior is not separately verified in the current record.
Tracked discrepancy record
5 citation, quotation, or authority issues are recorded in the source dataset.
- Fabricated: Case Law | Brief cites 'Miller v. Miller, 227 Neb. 71, 416 N.W.2d 358 (1987)' and attributes quotations/holdings that the court determined are fictitious; the citation refers to a nonexistent authority as used.
- Misrepresented: Case Law | Brief attributes quotations and holdings to Bergmeier v. Bergmeier that do not appear in that opinion and misstates the case's holdings.
- Fabricated: Case Law | Brief repeatedly cited 'Kennedy v. Kennedy, 27 Neb. App. 510, 934 N.W.2d 57 (2019)' and included block quotations and holdings not present; the cited unreported memorandum opinion does not contain the quoted language or the purported holding.
- False Quotes: Legal Norm | Brief purports to quote Neb. Rev. Stat. § 43-2923 as stating a specific policy favoring frequent contact with both parents; the statute does not contain the quoted language and was misquoted.
- False Quotes: Case Law | Brief attributes a quoted principle about notice of issues to Simons v. Simons that does not appear in the opinion; the quoted language cannot be found in the case and the case does not support the proposition advanced.
Questions this record answers
- What happened in Prososki v. Regan?
- The Nebraska Supreme Court struck the appellant's brief and dismissed the appeal due to the inclusion of numerous fictitious citations and fabricated quotations. Additionally, the court referred the appellant's counsel to the Counsel for Discipline for investigation into potential ethical violations regarding the duty of candor and professional conduct.
- Why does Prososki v. Regan matter for legal AI risk?
- Fabricated citations in a state-supreme-court brief end appeals and trigger bar referral; verify every cite against the reporter.
- What does the public record establish about Prososki v. Regan?
- The record summarizes the outcome described in the linked public source. The recorded document is hosted in the upstream publisher archive. This page is not a substitute for the complete docket, subsequent history, or jurisdiction-specific advice.
- Which source supports this Prososki v. Regan summary?
- The recorded source is Damien Charlotin case archive. It is classified as publisher document archive; review the linked material and subsequent docket history before relying on this summary.
Related matters
Related by court, jurisdiction, tool, or classified failure pattern. Similarity does not imply the same facts or outcome.