When You Must Withdraw Services
Pursuant to rules 3.7-7 and 3.4-1 of the Code of Conduct, you must withdraw your legal services in these situations:
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your client discharges you;
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your client persists in instructing you to act in a manner which is contrary to your professional ethics;
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you are not competent to continue to handle the matter; or
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you are in a conflict of interest.
For other examples of when you must withdraw from representing a client, see subsections 9(1) and 10(1) of the Rules on Client Identification, and rule 3.2-8 of the Code of Conduct on Dishonesty, Fraud when Client an Organization.
You have an obligation to the courts and tribunals, other lawyers, your client and yourself as articulated in the Code of Professional Conduct. You must work within, and not outside, the bounds of the law; no client has the right to demand that you violate the law or act in a fraudulent manner. And, because you owe a duty to the state to maintain its integrity and its laws, you should not aid, counsel, or assist a person to act in any way contrary to the law.
As always, review the rules on the manner of withdrawal and ensure that you first inform your client of your intention to withdraw. You must also, as applicable, inform the courts, opposing parties, and others who are directly affected.