Timothy Bumb v. Steven Gobin

• Court: District Court, N.D. California
• Decided: November 7, 2025
• Docket: 5:25-cv-04729
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

1 2 3 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 5 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 7 TIMOTHY BUMB, Case No. 25-cv-04729-SVK

8 Plaintiff, ORDER CONDITIONALLY 9 v. GRANTING FENNEMORE LLP’S MOTION TO WITHDRAW 10 STEVEN GOBIN, Re: Dkt. No. 25 11 Defendant.

12 On October 22, 2025, Defendant’s counsel, Fennemore, LLP (“Fennemore”) filed a motion 13 to withdraw as counsel of record. Dkt. 25 (the “Motion”). Having considered the Motion and 14 supporting declarations, the relevant law and the record in this case, the Court finds the Motion 15 suitable for determination without oral argument (see Civ. L.R. 7-1(b) and CONDITIONALLY 16 GRANTS the Motion. 17 “Counsel may not withdraw from an action until relieved by order of Court after written 18 notice has been given reasonably in advance to the client and to all other parties who have 19 appeared in the case .” Civil Local Rule 11–5(b). “The decision to permit counsel to withdraw is 20 within the sound discretion of the trial court.” Robinson v. Delgado, No. 02-cv-1538-NJV, 2010 21 WL 3259384, at *1 (N.D. Cal. Aug. 18, 2010) (citing LaGrand v. Stewart, 133 F.3d 1253, 1269 22 (9th Cir.1998)). In ruling on such a motion, courts consider: “(1) the reasons why withdrawal is 23 sought; (2) the prejudice withdrawal may cause to other litigants; (3) the harm withdrawal might 24 cause to the administration of justice; and (4) the degree to which withdrawal will delay the 25 resolution of the case.” Williams v. Cnty. of Fresno, 562 F. Supp. 3d 1032, 1035 (E.D. Cal. 2021); 26 see also Robinson, 2010 WL 3259384, at *2 (same). 27 Here, Fennemore’s Motion is supported by a declaration from Defendant, Steven Gobin, 1 it means to represent [him]self,” intends “to move forward as a pro se litigant” and thus 2 “consent[s] to[] Fennemore’s withdrawal.” Dkt. 25-1, ¶ 2. This weighs in favor of granting 3 withdrawal, (see Cal. R. Prof. Conduct 1.16(b)(6)), although “the consent of the client is not 4 dispositive.” Robinson, 2010 WL 3259384, at *2. The early stage of the proceedings (no answer 5 has been filed, and discovery does not close until June 1, 2026) also weighs in favor of 6 withdrawal. However, Plaintiff filed a partial non-opposition, requesting that “Mr. Gobin 7 immediately appears pro se and provides an e-mail address for service of papers.” Dkt. 27 at 2. 8 Given the fully briefed motion pending before the Court and Mr. Gobin’s residence in Idaho, the 9 Court finds that registration of Mr. Gobin for e-filing will serve to limit prejudice to both Parties if 10 withdrawal of counsel is granted. 11 Accordingly, the Court CONDITIONALLY GRANTS the Motion. Fennemore shall 12 “continue to accept service of papers for forwarding purposes until Mr. Gobin files a notice of 13 appearance pro se or substitutes new counsel” pursuant to Civ. L.R. 11-5(b). Moreover, if Mr. 14 Gobin wishes to proceed pro se, Fennemore shall aid Mr. Gobin in registering his e-mail with the 15 Court’s electronic case filing (“ECF”) system. See https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/cases-e- 16 filing/cm-ecf/. Mr. Gobin is informed that if he registers for e-filing, he will receive notices and 17 documents by email in this case rather than by regular mail. Once the above two conditions are 18 satisfied, Fennemore is permitted to withdraw as counsel. 19 If proceeding pro se, the Court further encourages Mr. Gobin to seek free legal assistance 20 from the Federal Pro Se Program located in the San Jose Courthouse. The Federal Pro Se 21 Program will not represent him in this action but can provide basic legal assistance at no cost. He 22 can schedule an appointment by calling (408) 297-1480 or emailing hsong@asianlawalliance.org. 23 He can find more information about the Legal Help Center at: https://cand.uscourts.gov/pro-se- 24 litigants/. The court also provides a free guide, “Representing Yourself in Federal Court: A 25 Handbook for Pro Se Litigants,” which provides instructions on how to proceed at every stage of 26 the case, including discovery, motions and trial. He can access the guide online 27 (https://cand.uscourts.gov/pro-se-handbook/) or in hard copy free of charge from the Clerk’s 1 Finally, if proceeding pro se Mr. Gobin must familiarize himself with this Court’s 2 Standing Order (https://cand.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/wp-content/uploads/judges/van- 3 keulen-svk/SvK-Civil-and-Discovery-Referral-Matters-Standing-Order-June-2024.pdf). 4 5 SO ORDERED. 6 Dated: November 7, 2025 1 Secon SUSAN VAN KEULEN 8 United States Magistrate Judge 9 10 1] as 12

13 «14

Oo Z 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28