Rubin v. Bankers Standard Insurance Company
- P. Castel
- 1:23-cv-08719
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Rubin v. Bankers Standard, Judge Castel granted counsel’s withdrawal motion and stayed the case while warning of dismissal with prejudice if no replacement lawyer appeared.
Cheryl Rubin in her capacity as executrix of the Estate of Estelle Rubin, Roman Rabinovich as withdrawing counsel, and the pending action against Bankers Standard Insurance Company.
What happened
Rubin v. Bankers Standard Insurance Company concerns Roman Rabinovich’s request to stop representing Cheryl Rubin as executrix of the Estate of Estelle Rubin. Rubin was served with the request but did not respond.
The court granted the request, effective when Rabinovich files proof that he served Rubin with the order. The case was stayed until January 17, 2025, and any replacement lawyer had to file a notice of appearance by that date and attend a February 7 telephone conference.
Judge P. Kevin Castel warned that failure to comply would result in dismissal of the lawsuit with prejudice, meaning the case would end and the plaintiff would recover nothing.
The detailed version
- Rubin v. Bankers Standard Insurance Company · No. 1:23-cv-08719
- P. Castel
- Dec. 4, 2024
Background
Roman Rabinovich, identified as the attorney, moved to withdraw as counsel of record for Cheryl Rubin, acting as executrix of the Estate of Estelle Rubin. He stated that he and the client had irreconcilable differences about how to proceed in the action. The client was served with the motion but did not respond.
Court’s Ruling
The court granted the motion to withdraw. The withdrawal became effective when Rabinovich filed an affidavit showing that he had served Rubin with a copy of the order. Rabinovich was required to serve the order promptly and file the affidavit of service within five days.
The court advised that an estate administrator or executrix ordinarily may not represent the estate without a lawyer admitted to practice in the court. Rubin was instructed to promptly retain an attorney. Any retained attorney had to file a notice of appearance by January 17, 2025, and appear at the telephone conference scheduled for February 7, 2025, at noon.
Stay and Warning
The action was stayed until January 17, 2025, with the stay expiring at 5 p.m. on that date. The court warned that failure to comply with the order would result in dismissal of the action with prejudice. The order explained that this meant the lawsuit would be over and the plaintiff would take nothing. The order addressed counsel and case-management issues and did not decide the underlying dispute with Bankers Standard Insurance Company.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.