Villalovos-Gutierrez v. Van de Pol — Gordon Rees Cautioned, Then Ordered to Show Cause, Over Fictitious Citations

Summary

In a wage-and-housing class action brought by former dairy workers in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, Magistrate Judge Carolyn K. Delaney's December 3, 2025, discovery order listed five cases cited by the defence that were miscited, inaccurately cited or not real, and cautioned counsel that filing AI-hallucinated or fictitious citations without confirming them is a potential ground for sanctions. On February 24, 2026, the court found the defence had again cited cases that do not exist despite that warning, and ordered it to show cause why monetary sanctions should not be imposed. Defence counsel Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani answered on March 3, 2026, with a partner's declaration accepting responsibility for not cite-checking a former senior counsel's drafts; the drafter denied using AI and attributed the errors to faulty notes and transcription. The court has not found that AI was used. On March 9, 2026, after reviewing the response, the court ordered a further statement on document production; the docket through April 12, 2026, shows no sanctions order. The matter followed the November 2025 public reprimand of a former Gordon Rees senior counsel in an Alabama bankruptcy for AI-generated fake citations.

Consequence

• Court cautioned defence counsel about fictitious or inaccurate citations (December 3, 2025)
• Order to show cause why monetary sanctions should not be imposed for repeated citation to non-existent cases (February 24, 2026)
• March 9, 2026: after reviewing the show-cause response, the court ordered a further statement on document production; no sanctions order on the docket through April 12, 2026

Who caught it A courtFound outside the organization

Key dates

1. December 3, 2025Event
2. October 20, 2026Checked against sources
3. October 21, 2026Checked against sources

Developments are added when the record is reviewed. Next review: January 20, 2027.

Evidence

Each passage is quoted from its source. The quoted passages are re-checked against the live pages every month.

1. cautioned regarding fictitious or inaccurate case citations.

   Supports: 3 Dec 2025 caution to defence counsel; the order lists five miscited or non-existent cases and warns about AI-generated citations

   Order granting motion to compel, Villalovos-Gutierrez v. Van de Pol, No. 2:24-cv-02305-DJC-CKD (E.D. Cal. Dec. 3, 2025), ECF No. 29 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California (via CourtListener RECAP) Primary source

2. defendant's counsel for repeated citation to fictitious or non-existent cases

   Supports: 24 Feb 2026 order to show cause on repeated non-existent citations after the prior warning

   Defendant also cites cases purportedly from this district that do not exist,1 even though defendant

   Supports: Court's finding that the defence again cited cases that do not exist after the prior warning

   Order and order to show cause, Villalovos-Gutierrez v. Van de Pol (E.D. Cal. Feb. 24, 2026), ECF No. 39 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California (via CourtListener RECAP) Primary source

3. using artificial intelligence in her research and instead advised that she relied on research she

   Supports: Gordon Rees is defence counsel; the drafter denied AI use (the preceding words on the page are 'Ms. Scully denied'); partner accepted responsibility

   Declaration of Sara A. Moore in response to the order to show cause, ECF No. 40 (filed Mar. 3, 2026) Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP (court filing, via CourtListener RECAP) Primary source

4. The court has reviewed Defendant G&H Dairy's [39] Response to the 2/24/2026 [39] Order to Show Cause. Good cause appearing, Defendant G&H Dairy shall provide a further statement on the status of production

   Supports: Caption, court, judge; disposition of the show-cause response (9 Mar 2026 minute order)

   STATEMENT of re Missing Discovery Responses filed by Plaintiff Juan Villalovos-Gutierrez

   Supports: Latest docket entry available (ECF No. 43, 12 Apr 2026); no sanctions order between the show-cause response and this entry

   Docket, Villalovos-Gutierrez v. Van de Pol, 2:24-cv-02305 CourtListener Primary source

5. A bankruptcy judge publicly reprimanded a former Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani senior counsel for submitting filings with artificial-intelligence generated fake citations, although the firm itself avoided court sanctions.

   Supports: The firm's earlier, separate AI-citation matter (Jackson Hospital bankruptcy, Nov 2025)

   Bankruptcy Judge Reprimands Ex-Gordon Rees Lawyer for AI Citations Nov. 21, 2025

   Supports: Date of the earlier reprimand report (November 2025)

   Bankruptcy Judge Reprimands Ex-Gordon Rees Lawyer for AI Citations Bloomberg Law Reporting or analysis