Rule 12: Appearance, Withdrawal, and Substitution of Counsel

A. Appearance of Counsel. An attorney who enters an appearance on behalf of a litigant shall be the attorney of record for that litigant. An attorney’s signature on a petition or answer shall constitute an entry of appearance unless the pleading was prepared in accordance with Rule 3,K. When applicable, attorneys shall file an entry of appearance with the court clerk. If an attorney initially appears at any proceeding and orally enters an appearance, they shall file an entry of appearance by the close of the next business day. An attorney appearing in place of the attorney of record due to unavailability need not file an entry of appearance. The signing of a pleading by an attorney on behalf of another attorney within the same firm or public office who is unavailable shall not constitute an entry of appearance.

B. Withdrawal of Counsel. Upon motion for withdrawal and notice to all counsel and the client involved, an attorney who has appeared of record in a case may be given leave to withdraw by order of the court, for good cause shown, after filing with the court clerk the motion, notice of hearing, and proof of service upon counsel and the client involved. If substitute counsel has entered an appearance, no hearing will be required.

C. Substitution of counsel. When there is a substitution of counsel within the same firm or public office, the new attorney shall file an entry of appearance which states a substitution of counsel is occurring. The entry of appearance shall include the new attorney’s information as set forth in Rule 3,I and the name and Bar number of the attorney being replaced. A copy of the entry of appearance shall be served on the adverse party’s attorney of record or on the party if self-represented.