Rule 11.3.Substitution and withdrawal of attorneys

Changing lawyers mid-case is easy when both attorneys agree: the new and outgoing attorney sign a written notice of substitution, and the case proceeds without delay except for good cause. Withdrawing without a replacement lined up is harder. The attorney needs the court's permission, which means filing a motion, setting it for hearing, notifying every party including the client, and disclosing the client's last known address. A judge can grant the withdrawal on conditions designed to avoid delay or unfairness to the other side. Once a final judgment is entered, an attorney can withdraw by simple notice, though it does not take effect until the appeal period runs and nothing else is pending.

The rule protects clients who are left without counsel by requiring the withdrawal order to warn them plainly: they have 21 days to hire a new attorney or tell the court they will represent themselves, or their claims may be dismissed with prejudice or a default may be entered against them. The case is automatically stayed for those 21 days. If the deadline passes with no response, the court, on its own or on the opposing party's request, can dismiss the claims or enter default, though it eases the usual advance-notice requirement for a default-judgment hearing in that circumstance. A separate provision addresses what happens when an attorney dies, becomes seriously ill, disappears, or is suspended or disbarred, staying the case unless the attorney was part of a firm that can carry the representation forward.