An AI tool is already drafting tentative judicial orders and research memos for judges in two of California’s largest court systems — and neither Los Angeles County nor Riverside County is required to tell the people whose cases it touches.
The disclosure emerged from a CalMatters/KPBS investigation published May 26 by reporters Cayla Mihalovich and Khari Johnson. Court records obtained by the outlets show that the Los Angeles County Superior Court — the largest trial court in the United States — signed a roughly $314,000 contract with an artificial intelligence startup called Learned Hand, launching a pilot in February 2026. Riverside County followed with a $10,000 agreement covering civil and probate research memos. Together, the two pilots mark the most significant deployment of AI judicial assistance in California history.
Six Los Angeles civil court judges and their research attorneys are using Learned Hand to conduct legal research, summarize motions, and assist in drafting tentative rulings. The tool draws on large language models from Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google. The company says it has tested the system for bias and accuracy but has not published those results…