AI settings for a small law firm in Indiana
Checked against the source documents on October 26, 2026
Indiana's amended Trial Rule 11 makes the signing lawyer certify that every cited authority is authentic. The other half, where client facts go before you file, is settings. The settings that answer that are on the main checklist. This page says which ones Indiana points at, and why.
What Indiana has said
Indiana Supreme Court: Cause No. 26S-MS-8, Order Amending Rules of Trial Procedure (Trial Rules 11, 11.1, 11.2), Order Amending Rules of Trial Procedure (signing and certification;, 2026-07-14.
- Confidentiality. Not addressed; no Indiana bar or Disciplinary Commission AI guidance for lawyers found.
- Competence. Not addressed in the order; Ind. Prof. Cond. R. 1.1 cmt. [6] carries the technology benefits-and-risks language.
- Disclosure. No AI disclosure or certification of AI use is required; the rule instead applies to all submissions including those prepared with AI (T.R. 11(F)).
- Verification. Attorney's signature certifies that any cited legal authority is authentic (T.R. 11(B)); noncompliant filings may be stricken and willful violations may lead to discipline (T.R. 11(C)); T.R. 11.2 lets courts restrict abusive litigants who file fictitious authority.
One line from it: "that any cited legal authority is authentic" (Exhibit A, Trial Rule 11(B) Certification).
The settings that answer it
- Use the business plan, not a personal one. On Claude Pro, Claude Max and ChatGPT Plus, training on chats is each user's own setting. On Claude Team, ChatGPT Business and Microsoft 365 Copilot with a work sign-in, business data is not used for training by default. On the checklist
- Turn off the training and feedback exceptions an admin can still turn off (Claude feedback, ChatGPT personal accounts that are still in use). On the checklist
- Set retention on purpose instead of taking the default. On the checklist
- Turn on single sign-on so a lawyer who leaves loses access the same day. On the checklist
- Decide on connectors, apps and agents before staff add them. On the checklist
- Put the vendor's written terms on training, retention, subprocessors and breach notice in the file. On the checklist
- Write the one-page staff instruction and a note for each new hire. On the checklist
- Keep a verification step before anything is filed. That is a procedure, not a setting, and no vendor sells it. On the checklist
- Decide what the engagement letter says about AI use and billing. That is yours to write; I only flag that the opinion raises it. On the checklist
Rules around it
Technology competence: Yes. Ind. Rules of Professional Conduct 1.1, cmt. [6] (benefits and risks associated with the technology), order of 2017-07-31, effective 2018-01-01
In motion: Indiana Supreme Court AI Governance Committee: guidance for attorneys and litigants was planned but not yet issued per Indiana Capital Chronicle; no due date given. 2026-02-13 source
What this page is not
This is a tech settings page, not legal advice. The state document above is the ethics half and it is yours to read and decide on. I am not a lawyer. I link the source so you can check me.
Send me one screenshot
Crop out client names, send me a screenshot of your Claude, ChatGPT or Microsoft 365 admin settings page, and I'll write back what I'd change. Free. I never need a login.
If you want this kept current for your firm, that is the monthly desk: I watch these settings as the vendors change them and as your state changes its guidance, answer staff questions in writing, usually within one business day, and write up setup notes for each new hire. $500 a month, cancel any month.
Who wrote this
I'm Nick Kaufman. I've spent six years in customer-facing technical support for SaaS, payments and CRM software, including three years at Tier 2 on a CRM built for financial advisors, whose firms work under SEC and FINRA rules. I'm not a lawyer and I don't give legal advice. I set up software so it does what the people responsible for it decided it should do.
Other states: the full list.