AI Rules for New Mexico Law Firms
Last verified July 8, 2026
New Mexico's clearest AI rule for lawyers comes from a 2024 State Bar ethics opinion, and firms with federal practice face an additional standing order on generative AI disclosure from the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. A broader Colorado-style AI Act has failed twice in the legislature but is likely to return. This page lays out what is adopted, what is effective in federal court, and what has stalled in Santa Fe.
Where New Mexico Stands
New Mexico has no enacted state AI statute governing lawyers or businesses generally. HB 60 (2025), an Artificial Intelligence Act that would have imposed documentation, disclosure, and impact-assessment duties on deployers of high-risk AI similar to Colorado's law, died in the 2025 session. Its 2026 successor, HB 28 (Artificial Intelligence Transparency Act), also died. Reintroduction in 2027 is likely, so firms using AI in hiring or advising business clients that deploy AI should track this. Separately, the State Bar of New Mexico has already spoken through Formal Ethics Advisory Opinion 2024-004, adopted in September 2024.
What Your Firm Must Do
Under Formal Ethics Advisory Opinion 2024-004, your firm may use generative AI only if lawyers independently verify all output before it reaches a court or client, keep client confidences out of tools that retain or train on inputs, adopt firm AI policies, and train all lawyers and staff on them. The opinion also bars billing clients for time the AI saved. If your firm files in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico, a separate Standing Order Regarding Use of Generative AI requires disclosing at the top of any filing drafted with generative AI that it was used and which specific tool, plus certifying that a human checked the AI content for accuracy. No New Mexico state court has issued an equivalent order, so this obligation currently applies only to federal filings.
What's Still Pending
Neither HB 60 (2025) nor its 2026 successor HB 28 became law. If a future version passes, its documentation, disclosure, and impact-assessment duties for high-risk AI would reach firms using AI in hiring as well as firms advising business clients that deploy high-risk AI systems.
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