# Ethical Guardrail Checklist

Run this before you rely on any AI-assisted work. If any box is unchecked, the work is not ready to leave your desk.

- [ ] **Confidentiality.** I kept client-identifying facts out of the tool, or the tool has appropriate data terms.
- [ ] **Competence.** I understand this tool's limits for this task.
- [ ] **Grounding.** The model worked from sources I trust, not its own memory.
- [ ] **Verification.** I opened and confirmed every citation myself in a real database.
- [ ] **Judgment.** I made the strategic calls, not the model.
- [ ] **Candor.** Everything I will file is actually true.
- [ ] **Supervision.** I reviewed this as I would a new associate's draft.
- [ ] **Record.** I can explain later how this work was produced.

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## The duties behind the checklist

These map to the [Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct](https://www.legalethicstexas.com/resources/rules/texas-disciplinary-rules-of-professional-conduct/). Rule numbers are illustrative; confirm the current text before relying on them.

| Duty | Rule (Texas) | What it means for AI use |
|---|---|---|
| Competence and diligence | 1.01 | Understand the tool well enough to use it, or do not use it. |
| Confidentiality | 1.05 | Client information stays protected, including from the tools you type it into. |
| Supervision of nonlawyers | 5.01, 5.03 | Treat AI as an assistant whose work you must check. You own the result. |
| Candor to the tribunal | 3.03 | What you file must be true because you confirmed it. |

## Do and do not

**Do**
- Use AI to draft, summarize, outline, and brainstorm angles.
- Ground it in statutes, opinions, and your own materials.
- Verify every citation in a real database before you cite it.
- Use fictional or de-identified facts in consumer tools.
- Keep the final judgment, and the signature, yours.

**Do not**
- File anything with a citation you have not personally read.
- Paste privileged or client-identifying facts into consumer tools.
- Treat a confident answer as a verified one.
- Let the model choose strategy or make the call for a client.
- Assume grounding or a clean format removes your duty to check.

## Document, review, verify

- **Document.** Which tool, for which task, on what facts. One line in the file is usually enough.
- **Review.** Read the full output as the responsible attorney. Edit for accuracy, tone, and fit.
- **Verify.** Confirm every legal authority and factual claim against a real source before it goes anywhere.
