The lawyer, Jason Kenneth Castro of Remote Legal Services of Florida LLC, represented medical marijuana certification company My Florida Green in a lawsuit that accused rival Leafwell of giving out certifications at pop-up events and using dispensary funds to subsidize physician fees, in violation of state law. U.S. District Judge Sheri Jean Polster Chappell of the Middle District of Florida sanctioned him last month for filing a motion filled with fake citations, calling his response to the revelations about the errors "as colossal a collection of excuses and projection as the court has seen in 25 years on the bench" and accusing him of remaining silent "on his use of AI to litigate this case" and taking "no responsibility" for his actions.
In his motion Friday to reconsider his referral to the Florida Bar and the requirements that he attach the sanctions order to every new case for the next two years and file a notarized affidavit from his client, he said the measures "reach beyond what is necessary to deter repetition of the citation misconduct at issue."
While he accepts her finding that his conduct warrants sanctions, Castro said, he argues that Judge Chappell's opinion "relied heavily" on information not included in her order to show cause; specifically, her findings that Castro's explanations for the fake citations weren't credible and demonstrated a failure to take responsibility for his actions, his "purported use of AI tools" and her description of his communications with opposing counsel as "defiant" and "condescending."
"Respectfully, when new factual grounds become part of the basis for sanctions — particularly sanctions affecting reputation and professional licensure — Rule 11 [of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure] and basic due process require notice that those specific issues are on the table and an opportunity to present evidence or explanation," he says. "The [order to show cause] did not inform undersigned that his email tone with opposing counsel, his use (or non-use) of AI tools, or his overall credibility in responding to the [order] would themselves be treated as sanctionable conduct or as the foundation for bar-level and reputational sanctions."
Castro called the referral of the matter to the Florida Bar and the orders to file a notarized affidavit and attach the sanctions order to future cases "disproportionate to the misconduct found," given his lack of a disciplinary record and the steps he has taken to avoid repeating his mistakes. He also maintains that he only used AI tools as "drafting aids, not as independent sources of law."
"Undersigned understands that no tool relieves him of his non-delegable duty to personally verify citations and quotations," he added. "Regardless of the extent of any AI use, undersigned accepts that his processes in connection with the TRO were inadequate to ensure accurate, court-verifiable citations."
Castro is one of many lawyers to face sanctions in recent years for submitting motions with fake citations suspected to have been generated by AI. The professional consequences for these lawyers — many of whom acknowledged their use of AI once the errors were found — have varied. Last summer, for instance, fake citations prompted a federal judge to refer three Butler Snow LLP attorneys to the Alabama Bar and pulled them from their representation of a former state corrections commissioner in a civil rights lawsuit filed by an incarcerated man. Other attorneys have been hit with fines, such as a Connecticut-based solo practitioner who was ordered to pay $500 last month for submitting a motion with false, AI-generated case citations.
Other judges, however, have been more forgiving, such as an Oregon federal judge who decided against sanctioning Buchalter PC and co-counsel Snell & Wilmer LLP for submitting a similarly faulty motion in a trademark dispute, saying he was satisfied with their "remedial actions."
My Florida Green dismissed its lawsuit against Leafwell in early November, with plans to refile its claims in Florida state court with additional defendants, saying, "Additional information has identified dispensaries and medical providers allegedly involved in the challenged promotional events." Also on Friday, Leafwell sued My Florida Green, claiming that the certification company's suit was part of a scheme to extort Leafwell and ruin its business.
Castro did not immediately respond to Law360's request for comment Tuesday,
My Florida Green is represented by Jason Kenneth Castro of Remote Legal Services of Florida LLC.
Leafwell is represented by Kevin Michael Bergin, Paul B. Lewis and Jody Stafford Fernandez of DLA Piper LLP.
The case is the Doc App Inc. v. Leafwell Inc., case number 2:25-cv-00838, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
–Additional reporting by Emily Sawicki and Rose Krebs. Editing by Karin Roberts.
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