{"id":905651,"date":"2026-05-07T15:41:44","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T21:41:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=905651"},"modified":"2026-05-07T15:41:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T21:41:46","slug":"construction-disputes-discovery-of-artificial-intelligence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/construction-disputes-discovery-of-artificial-intelligence\/","title":{"rendered":"Discovery of Generative AI in Construction Disputes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Jacob Zahniser | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.millernash.com\/industry-news\/discovery-of-generative-ai-in-construction-disputes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Miller Nash<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Recent decisions on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/ai-in-construction-benefits\/\">discovery of generative AI usage<\/a>, particularly prompts, searches, and outputs, reflects a judicial instinct to apply familiar doctrinal framework to new technology, rather than create AI-specific discovery rules. Two decisions issued one week apart,\u00a0<em>Warner v. Gilbarco, Inc<\/em>. (E.D. Mich. Feb. 10, 2026) and\u00a0<em>United States v. Heppner<\/em>\u00a0(S.D.N.Y. Feb. 17, 2026), illustrate that approach. Read together,\u00a0<em>Warner\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0<em>Heppner<\/em>\u00a0establish that discoverability of AI-related materials turns not on the use of AI itself, but on traditional questions of privilege, work product, and relevance. For construction claims, whether AI-assisted work is subject to discovery will be based on how it is used, not the fact that it is used at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">There Is No \u201cAI Rule\u201d<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Warner&nbsp;<\/em>and&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>&nbsp;emphasize that generative AI does not alter existing legal standards. Instead,&nbsp;<em>Warner&nbsp;<\/em>and&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>&nbsp;applied existing doctrine to AI-assisted activities. This is critical: discovery disputes about AI prompts or outputs are analyzed the same way as any other document.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Heppner<\/em>: AI Use as Non-Privileged, Discoverable Material<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>In&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>, a criminal defendant independently used a public AI platform to develop legal theories. The court held that neither attorney-client privilege nor work product doctrine applied. There was no attorney-client relationship; the communications were with an AI system, not a lawyer. There was no reasonable expectation of confidentiality; the platform\u2019s terms allowed data retention and potential disclosure. There was no attorney direction or strategy; the defendant created the materials independently, not as part of counsel\u2019s litigation preparation. The fact that the defendant later shared the materials with an attorney did not retroactively cloak the materials in privilege.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>From a discovery standpoint,&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>&nbsp;signals that AI prompts and outputs may be fully discoverable where a party conducts self-generated research or analysis outside the attorney-client relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Warner<\/em>: AI-Assisted Work Product Is Protected<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>In&nbsp;<em>Warner<\/em>, the defendants sought discovery into a pro se plaintiff\u2019s use of AI, including prompts and outputs. The court denied the motion, finding the work product doctrine applied: the materials were prepared in anticipation of litigation; using AI did not constitute purposeful disclosure to a third-party; and the requested discovery essentially sough mental impressions, improperly exposing litigation strategy. The court also characterized broad requests for AI usage as disproportionate and akin to a \u201cfishing expedition.\u201d The AI prompts and outputs in&nbsp;<em>Warner&nbsp;<\/em>were the functional equivalent to drafts or internal notes and were therefore shielded when they reflected litigation strategy or mental impressions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Reconciling&nbsp;<em>Warner&nbsp;<\/em>and&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Although the outcomes differ,&nbsp;<em>Warner&nbsp;<\/em>and&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>&nbsp;are not inconsistent; both apply the same analytical framework but reach different results based on the presence (or absence) of counsel; expectations of confidentiality; and whether the materials reflect litigation strategy.&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>&nbsp;addresses independent, non-confidential AI use, while&nbsp;<em>Warner&nbsp;<\/em>addresses litigation-directed, strategy-laden use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Relevance to the Construction Industry<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Warner\u2019s&nbsp;<\/em>and&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>\u2019s treatment of discovery of AI prompts and outputs have immediate consequences for construction litigation, where disputes often involve complex technical analyses, delay claims, and document-heavy discovery. Contractors and consultants increasingly use AI tools to summarize contracts, model delay scenarios or analyze critical path method (CPM) schedules. If done independently (as in&nbsp;<em>Heppner<\/em>), those prompts and outputs could be discoverable as factual or analytical work. However, when AI is used to draft claims, requests for information, or expert narratives under counsel direction in anticipation of litigation,&nbsp;<em>Warner<\/em>&nbsp;suggests those materials may qualify as protected work product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In summary, courts are not treating AI as exceptional; instead, they are asking traditional questions about confidentiality, attorney involvement, and its litigation purpose. For construction industry participants, the lesson is straightforward: AI-assisted work will be discoverable or protected based on how it is used, not whether it is used at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>When one of your cases is in need of a construction expert, estimates, insurance appraisal or umpire services in defect or insurance disputes &#8211; please call Advise &amp; Consult, Inc. at 801.641.8304, or email <a href=\"mailto:experts@adviseandconsult.net\">experts@adviseandconsult.net<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jacob Zahniser | Miller Nash Recent decisions on discovery of generative AI usage, particularly prompts, searches, and outputs, reflects a judicial instinct to apply familiar doctrinal framework to new technology, rather than create AI-specific discovery rules. Two decisions issued one week apart,\u00a0Warner v. Gilbarco, Inc. (E.D. Mich. Feb. 10, 2026) and\u00a0United States v. Heppner\u00a0(S.D.N.Y. Feb.&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/construction-disputes-discovery-of-artificial-intelligence\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Discovery of Generative AI in Construction Disputes<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[12180],"tags":[9895,11331,204],"class_list":["post-905651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-construction-disputes","tag-advise-consult","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-construction-disputes","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Discovery of Generative AI in Construction Disputes - Advise &amp; 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