Helping Self-Represented Litigants Navigate AI for Legal Uses

By Alan Kilpatrick

Information literacy principles remain constant, even as technology changes. As more members of the public turn to GenAI tools for answers to legal questions, information professionals and law libraries can play a critical role in helping people use these tools more safely by building GenAI information literacy among the public. This includes explaining how GenAI works, the markers of credible legal information regardless of source, tool, or technology, the risks of relying on GenAI outputs, effective prompting skills, where to find credible sources of legal information, and options for legal assistance.

On April 15, 2026, I spoke about this topic in Helping Self-Represented Litigants Navigate AI for Legal Uses, a webinar I presented with Jennifer Leitch and Annette Demers for the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL/ACBD) Professional Development Committee:

Self-represented litigants (SRL) are increasingly relying on AI to aid them in preparation of court documents. Law librarians are well-positioned to advise SRL on appropriate and inappropriate uses of AI. In this session, you’ll hear more about how SRL are being warned by the courts for submitting hallucinated cases. Learn more about the vulnerabilities of SRL and sources for assistance for them. Learn about how law librarians are helping SRL navigate the pitfalls of AI, as well as practical tips and advice that law librarians can provide.

My portion of the webinar highlighted a new resource from the Saskatchewan Access to Legal Information initiative called Using GenAI Tools to Obtain Legal Information. Recognizing the reality that public use of GenAI is increasing, SALI developed the guide, rooted in strong information literacy practices, to support the informed use of GenAI tools.

The recorded webinar is available for purchase and viewing from the CALL/ACBD website, and the Using GenAI Tools to Obtain Legal Information guide is available on the SALI website.