On April 29, 2025, Justice Reed of the New York County Commercial Division issued a decision in Halden v. Parker, 2025 NY Slip Op. 31544(U), granting a motion to relieve counsel based on a client’s failure to communicate with counsel even though the client communicated with the opposing party, explaining:
Counsel represents that he has undertaken efforts to obtain the cooperation required but has been unable to do so due to the declining health of defendant Parker. Counsel submits that he has no ability to move this action forward and requests an order granting his withdrawal, along with a 60-day stay of this action to permit Parker to retain new counsel.
Anders Halden, plaintiff in this action, filed an affirmation in opposition to the instant motion. Halden contests Berg’s efforts to communicate with defendant Parker and challenges Parker’s alleged incapacitation. Halden affirms under penalty of perjury that in February 2025, he received tax forms from defendant Parker and a Linkedln notification that Parker viewed his profile. Based on these events, Halden submits that Parker is not incapacitated or unreachable and objects to the imposition of any stay on the action.
CPLR 321 (b) (2) provides:
an attorney of record may withdraw or be changed by order of the court in which the action is pending, upon motion on such notice to the client of the withdrawing attorney, to the attorneys of all other parties in the action or, if a party appears without an attorney, to the party, and to any other person, as the court may direct.
If an attorney deems it necessary to end the attorney-client relationship without the consent of the client, the attorney may move on such notice as may be directed by the court, to be relieved as counsel by court order. The decision to grant or deny permission for counsel to withdraw lies within the discretion of the trial court, and the court’s decision should not be overturned absent a showing of an
improvident exercise of discretion.Here, counsel Berg submitted sufficient evidence, by way of attorney affirmation, of a breakdown in the attorney-client relationship sufficient to warrant withdrawal. A party’s failure to communicate with its attorney, and lack of overall general cooperation with its attorney, are sufficient grounds to grant leave to withdraw.
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).