Granados v. City National Bank
- Haywood Gilliam
- 4:23-cv-02948
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Elizabeth Granados v. Wharton Note Company, Judge Gilliam grants one stipulation, declines another, and continues hearings and deadlines.
Elizabeth Granados, Wharton Note Company, and Wharton Note Company’s defense counsel were affected by the scheduling changes, temporary restraining-order extension, and ruling concerning counsel’s withdrawal.
What happened
In Elizabeth Granados v. Wharton Note Company, the parties submitted one agreement to postpone a hearing and extend Wharton Note Company’s deadline to respond to the amended complaint, and another asking to release its lawyer.
The court granted the first agreement but not the second. It allowed defense counsel to appear by telephone, postponed the hearings to December 7, extended the temporary restraining order, and moved the response deadline to December 10.
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. said the court was strongly disinclined to let defense counsel withdraw before new counsel appeared because Wharton Note Company is an entity that cannot represent itself without a lawyer.
The detailed version
- Granados v. City National Bank · No. 4:23-cv-02948
- Haywood Gilliam
- Oct. 26, 2023
Background
The parties submitted two stipulations. The first sought to continue the order-to-show-cause hearing and extend the deadline for responding to the First Amended Complaint. The second sought to have Blake Law Firm relieved as defense counsel.
Rulings and Scheduling Orders
The court granted the relief requested in the first stipulation but not the second. It ordered that:
- Defense counsel could appear by telephone on October 26, 2023, regarding the motion to withdraw. - The order-to-show-cause hearing concerning Defendant’s counsel was set for November 16, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. in Oakland, California. The hearing would be removed from the calendar if substitution of counsel or an appearance by new counsel occurred earlier. - The order-to-show-cause hearing and the case-management conference, along with related case-management submission deadlines, were continued from October 26 to December 7, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. - The temporary restraining order was extended until the court heard and decided the order-to-show-cause matter concerning the application. - Wharton Note Company’s deadline to file and serve a responsive pleading to the First Amended Complaint was extended from October 31 to December 10, 2023.
Counsel Withdrawal
The court stated that it was strongly disinclined to allow defense counsel to withdraw unless and until new counsel substituted into the case. The court explained that Wharton Note Company could not proceed without a lawyer because it is an entity rather than an individual. The court stated that it would discuss this issue with the parties at the hearing.
Disposition
The order terminated docket entries 40 and 41. It granted the first stipulation and did not grant the second stipulation.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.