(PS) Aziz v. U.S. Postal Service ( 2021 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 FARZAD AZIZ, No. 2:20-cv-01200-MCE-KJN 12 Plaintiff, 13 v. ORDER 14 UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE, et al., 15 Defendants. 16 17 Presently before the Court is an unopposed Motion to Withdraw as Counsel (ECF 18 No. 8) filed by Schultz Law Group, PC (“Counsel”), counsel for Plaintiff Farzad Aziz 19 (“Plaintiff”), by which Counsel seeks to withdraw leaving Plaintiff in propria persona. This 20 Motion is governed by the requirements of Eastern District of California Local 21 Rule 182(d), which provides that an attorney may not withdraw, leaving the client in 22 propria persona, absent a noticed motion, appropriate affidavits, notice to the client and 23 all other parties who have appeared, and compliance with the Rules of Professional 24 Conduct of the State Bar of California. California Rule of Professional Conduct 25 1.16(b)(10) permits a member of the State Bar to seek to withdraw from representation 26 when “[t]he lawyer believes in good faith . . . that the tribunal will find the existence 27 of . . . good cause for withdrawal.” However, “[a] lawyer shall not terminate a 28 representation until the lawyer has taken reasonable steps to avoid reasonably 1 | foreseeable prejudice to the rights of the client, such as giving the client sufficient notice 2 | to permit the client to retain other counsel.” Cal. R. of Professional Conduct 1.16(d). 3 | Whether to grant leave to withdraw is subject to the sound discretion of the Court and 4 | “may be granted subject to such appropriate conditions as the Court deems fit.” E.D. 5 | Cal. Local R. 182(d); Canandaigua Wine Co.., Inc. v. Edwin Moldauer, No. 1:02-cv-06599 6 | OWW DLB, 2009 WL 89141, at “1 (E.D. Cal. Jan. 14, 2009). 7 Because Counsel’s request is procedurally correct, substantively supported and 8 | unopposed, the Motion to Withdraw (ECF No. 8) is GRANTED. Schultz Law Group, PC 9 | is relieved as counsel of record for Plaintiff effective upon the filing of proof of service of 10 | this signed Order on Plaintiff at his last known address: 11 3400 16th Street, Unit 106 40 San Francisco, CA 94114 13 IT IS SO ORDERED. 14 | Dated: November 16, 2021 Mater LEK Whig { AX Xo - ‘6 SENIOR UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28