diff --git a/.gitlab-ci.yml b/.gitlab-ci.yml
index 4d0343f47985fc802d4dc855f63ac40dd2b5bd9a..9c6d0878810b7d8955aeb118e9a0286f27fbb1b0 100644
--- a/.gitlab-ci.yml
+++ b/.gitlab-ci.yml
@@ -138,6 +138,12 @@ plotting:
 
     - pytest test/gw/plot_test.py
 
+authors:
+  stage: test
+  image: bilbydev/bilby-test-suite-python37
+  script:
+    - python test/check_author_list.py
+
 pages:
   stage: deploy
   dependencies:
diff --git a/AUTHORS.md b/AUTHORS.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..bfd80a6e9bf73780d29bc0a133324434cd4eba1c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/AUTHORS.md
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+# Authors
+
+This file lists all the authors in first-name alphabetical order who have
+contributed (either by code contribution or indirectly). If your name is not
+listed here, please contact anyone on this list and raise your concern.
+
+Abhirup Ghosh
+Aditya Vijaykumar
+Andrew Kim
+Andrew Miller
+Antoni Ramos-Buades
+Avi Vajpeyi
+Bruce Edelman
+Carl-Johan Haster
+Cecilio Garcia-Quiros
+Charlie Hoy
+Christopher Berry
+Christos Karathanasis
+Colm Talbot
+Daniel Williams
+David Keitel
+Duncan Macleod
+Eric Thrane
+Ethan Payne
+Francisco Javier Hernandez
+Gregory Ashton
+Hector Estelles
+Ignacio Magaña Hernandez
+Isobel Marguarethe Romero-Shaw
+Jade Powell
+James A Clark
+John Veitch
+Katerina Chatziioannou
+Kaylee de Soto
+Khun Sang Phukon
+Kshipraa Athar
+Liting Xiao
+Maite Mateu-Lucena
+Marc Arene
+Marcus Edward Lower
+Margaret Millhouse
+Marta Colleoni
+Matthew Carney
+Matthew David Pitkin
+Michael Puerrer
+Michael Williams
+Monica Rizzo
+Moritz Huebner
+Nicola De Lillo
+Nikhil Sarin
+Nirban Bose
+Paul Easter
+Paul Lasky
+Philip Relton
+Rhys Green
+Roberto Cotesta
+Rory Smith
+S. H. Oh
+Sacha Husa
+Scott Coughlin
+Serguei Ossokine
+Shanika Galaudage
+Sharan Banagiri
+Shichao Wu
+Simon Stevenson
+Soichiro Morisaki
+Sumeet Kulkarni
+Sylvia Biscoveanu
+Tathagata Ghosh
+Virginia d'Emilio
+Vivien Raymond
diff --git a/test/check_author_list.py b/test/check_author_list.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1b082e219da9e6105185cd47f0a9bd3b03e4287d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/check_author_list.py
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+""" A script to verify that the .AUTHOR.md file is up to date """
+
+import re
+import subprocess
+
+special_cases = ["plasky", "thomas", "mj-will"]
+AUTHORS_list = []
+with open("AUTHORS.md", "r") as f:
+    AUTHORS_list = " ".join([line for line in f]).lower()
+
+
+lines = subprocess.check_output(["git", "shortlog", "HEAD", "-sn"]).decode("utf-8").split("\n")
+
+if len(lines) == 0:
+    raise Exception("No authors to check against")
+
+fail_test = False
+for line in lines:
+    line = line.replace(".", " ")
+    line = re.sub('([A-Z][a-z]+)', r' \1', re.sub('([A-Z]+)', r' \1', line))
+    for element in line.split()[1:]:
+        element = element.lower()
+        if element not in AUTHORS_list and element not in special_cases:
+            print("Failure: {} not in AUTHOR.md".format(element))
+            fail_test += True
+
+if fail_test:
+    raise Exception("Author check list failed.. have you added your name to the .AUTHOR file?")