Judgment T-323 of 2024 is brought up, where the Constitutional Court of Colombia delved into a lawsuit in which the First Instance Judge used Artificial Intelligence and, particularly, “ChatGPT” to base his Judgment.
The plaintiff argued that the use of Artificial Intelligence could violate the right to due process and the impartiality of judicial decisions.
The Constitutional Court highlighted the following grounds:
First, the principle of judicial autonomy, according to which the use of Artificial Intelligence cannot displace the central function of judges, which is to assess the facts, interpret the law and make decisions based on their independent criteria. Human judgment must be the guiding axis of the judicial process, and any technological tool must serve as a support, not as a substitute for the judge's reasoning.
Secondly, it was emphasized that any decision involving the use of Artificial Intelligence must guarantee the right to due process, which implies that the parties can understand and question the decisions taken. Artificial Intelligence must act in a transparent manner, allowing its interventions to be understandable and justifiable from a legal point of view.
Thirdly, the Court established that, while Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool in the administration of justice (for example, for document management or data analysis), it should not be used to replace the process of evaluating evidence and the motivation of sentences. The presence of a human person responsible for the decisions taken must always be guaranteed.
And finally, any use of AI in the judicial system must comply with strict principles of transparency and accountability. Judges must be able to explain how AI tools influence their decisions and ensure that litigants can challenge such influences if they feel they have been harmed.
In its ruling, the Constitutional Court determined that, while it is possible to use Artificial Intelligence in the judicial system, its role must be limited to administrative and documentary support tasks. Artificial Intelligence was expressly prohibited from replacing judicial reasoning in the interpretation of facts and the assessment of evidence.
The Court ordered the Supreme Council of the Judiciary to adopt measures to regulate the use of Artificial Intelligence, ensuring that the principles of transparency, accountability and due process are respected.
The Court also stressed the importance of training judges and other judicial operators in the use of emerging technologies, ensuring proper and responsible management of these tools.
