Judge Bruce G. Iwasaki

Department 58

Hearing Date: March 20, 2024

Case Name: Yem v. Mora

Case No.: 23STCV15639

Matter: Motion to Be Relieved as Counsel

Moving Party: Counsel for Defendant/Cross-Complainant Genesis Health Services Inc. dba Fountain Hospice

Responding Party: Unopposed

Tentative Ruling: The Motion to be Relieved as Counsel is granted.

The attorney for Defendant/Cross-Complainant Genesis Health Services Inc. dba Fountain Hospice’s counsel – Jeremy Alberts of BWA Law Group APC – seeks to be relieved as counsel of record. Plaintiff Yem filed an opposition.

The motion to be relieved as counsel is granted.

Discussion

An attorney is entitled to withdraw upon the consent of the client, or without that consent if approved by the court. (Code Civ. Proc., § 284; Ramirez v. Sturdevant (1994) 21 Cal.App.4th 904, 915.) In the latter case, counsel must make a motion to be relieved as attorney of record. The motion must be made using mandatory forms: Notice of Motion and Motion to be Relieved as Counsel – Civil (MC-051), Declaration (MC-052), and Proposed Order (MC-053). (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1362, subd. (a), (b), (e).)

The declaration accompanying the motion to be relieved as counsel must state “in general terms and without compromising the confidentiality of the attorney-client relationship why a motion under Code of Civil Procedure section 284(2) is brought instead of filing a consent under Code of Civil Procedure section 284(1).” (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1362, subd. (b).)

The notice to the client must be done by personal service, electronically, or mail. If it is done via mail under Code of Civil Procedure section 1013, it must be accompanied by a declaration confirming the service address to be the most current residence or that it is the client’s last known address, and the attorney has been unable to locate a more current address. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1362, subd. (d)(1)(A)-(B).)

Here, Attorney Alberts has complied with the Rules of Court by filing all the appropriate forms (MC-051, MC-052, and MC-053). He has also submitted a supporting declaration providing an adequate explanation for why he is moving to be relieved as counsel; he asserts that there has been a breakdown in the working relationship.

Further, Form MC-052 indicates that notice was provided to Defendant via mail and his client’s address was confirmed by Secretary of State website.

Additionally, trial in this matter is not set until July 28, 2025, and the next hearing is a Motion for Protective Order for July 25, 2024, a motion which pertains to discovery propounded by Defendants Spring River Palliative Care, Inc., Ocean Breeze Hospice & Palliative Care Corp. and Genesis Health Services. Thus, no prejudice will result from granting this motion where there is adequate time to retain new counsel.

Lastly, Plaintiff Yem filed an objection to the withdrawal on the grounds that as an owner and director of Genesis Health Services she is entitled to Attorney Alberts’ “file.” This objection is not well taken and has no bearing on the grounds the Court must consider when assessing whether a motion to be relieved as counsel should be granted.

Alberts’s motion to be relieved as counsel of Genesis Health Services is granted.