This is our monthly summary of the lawsuits against AI chatbot companies: OpenAI (ChatGPT), Character.AI and Google. It covers what changed in the past month and what to watch. The dated history is kept in the update log on our AI chatbot lawsuit page.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or chat at 988lifeline.org. In an emergency, call 911.
Following This Because of Someone in Your Family?
You may have a claim if these three things are true:
- You or a family member, adult or minor, used an AI chatbot such as ChatGPT, Character.AI or Gemini.
- The chatbot encouraged self-harm or delusional thinking, failed to discourage it, or gave medical or mental health advice the person relied on.
- The result was a death by suicide, a suicide attempt that led to a hospital or mental health admission, or a serious psychiatric injury that needed treatment.
Call 866-837-1010 or send us a message. The review is free and confidential.
Where Things Stand in November 2026
- OpenAI: the California state-court cases are coordinated in JCCP 5431 before Judge Ethan P. Schulman in San Francisco. Discovery has reportedly opened. No court there has ruled on OpenAI’s defenses, and no trial date is set.
- Character.AI: in Chapter 11 bankruptcy since October 12. Lawsuits against the company are paused.
- Google: a defendant in Character.AI cases, and since March 2026 in a wrongful death case over its own Gemini chatbot.
- No trial and no public settlement in any ChatGPT injury case.
What Happened in the Past Month
Character.AI filed for bankruptcy. The filing in Delaware came with a $20 million opening bid from Disney for some of the company’s technology. A hearing on the sale is reported for November 24. The court has not yet set a deadline for filing claims. Our post on what the bankruptcy means for families explains what to do in the meantime.
Eight states sued OpenAI. Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska and West Virginia filed separate cases on October 14. Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee were not among them. Texas followed on October 23 with a suit against OpenAI and its chief executive. State cases do not pay families.
Parents sued Google over AI on a school Chromebook. In early November, the parents of a 13-year-old North Carolina girl sued Google in California, alleging that its AI tools on her school-issued Chromebook discussed suicide with her for months without alerting anyone. Google has said it is reviewing the claims.
More families sued OpenAI. New cases were filed in San Francisco in October, including a wrongful death case over a 15-year-old and a case over a death after a change in epilepsy medication. They are expected to join the coordinated proceeding.
New York passed a youth chatbot safety law that takes effect January 1, 2027.
What to Watch
- The Character.AI sale hearing and the claims deadline the bankruptcy court will set.
- Amended complaints and the next hearings in JCCP 5431.
- OpenAI’s responses to the new state cases.
What It Means for Families
None of this files a claim for anyone, and state deadlines keep running: generally two years in Alabama and Georgia and one in Tennessee. The most useful thing a family can do now is save the conversations. For the claims themselves, see our pages on ChatGPT and Character.AI, and our posts on ChatGPT suicide lawsuits and AI psychosis lawsuits.
Talk With an AI Chatbot Lawyer
Fob & Foster Personal Injury Lawyers review these cases at no charge. Call 866-837-1010 or send us a message. There is no fee unless we recover.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the latest update in the AI chatbot lawsuits?
As of November 2026, Character.AI is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, nine states have sued OpenAI since mid-October, new family lawsuits against OpenAI were filed in October, and discovery has reportedly opened in the coordinated California ChatGPT cases. No case has been tried.
Has any ChatGPT lawsuit settled?
No settlement has been publicly announced in a ChatGPT injury or wrongful death case. Character.AI and Google agreed in January 2026 to settle five family lawsuits on confidential terms.
Is there an AI chatbot class action?
No. The injury and wrongful death cases are individual lawsuits. The California state-court cases against OpenAI are coordinated in JCCP 5431, which is not a class action.
Fob James, IV
Fob James obtained a B.S., in software engineering from Auburn University and then continued his education by getting his J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law. After working for a large national firm for several years, Fob found that his passion was fighting for individuals who have been seriously injured or wronged by others. Fob believes that the jury is the great equalizer to the power and influence that large corporations have in society. Many of Fob’s cases are high profile and have been featured in, among others: Bloomberg News, PlanAdvisor, AL.com, PlanSponsor, National Law Review, and BusinessInsider. For his work in obtaining numerous multi-million dollar outcomes for his clients, Fob has been recognized by: National Trial Lawyers Top 100, SuperLawyers Rising Star (2020-2026), Birmingham Business Journal Who’s Who in Law (2023-2025), and TrustAnalytica – Top Personal Injury Lawyers in Alabama.