UK prosecutor cited nonexistent case in High Court, possibly after AI search

On November 3, 2026, The Guardian published an exclusive report stating that a senior prosecutor in the UK Crown Prosecution Service cited a legal precedent that does not exist during a High Court hearing. The error, the paper reported, came after the prosecutor used AI search tools while preparing for the case. The case concerned an allegation of child rape, and the dispute before the court centered on whether a child should be prosecuted for the rape of a younger child. Ravinder Dhillon, who appeared for the Crown Prosecution Service, referred to an entirely fabricated case during the hearing. The Guardian said the incident is one of dozens of AI-related errors that have surfaced in court proceedings, and reported that it had renewed concerns about model hallucinations entering the justice system. As of the report, no details were given on how the CPS or the court responded to the mistake, and no further information was available on how the case itself proceeds.