Federal Savings & Loan Insurance v. Angell, Holmes & Lea

NOONAN, Circuit Judge:

Most clients would probably be startled by the proposition that they could not fire their lawyer; and even lawyers might find the proposition surprising. In any event, it is not the law of California, which holds that a client’s power to discharge an attorney, with or without cause, “is absolute.” *396Fracasse v. Brent, 6 Cal.3d 784, 100 Cal.Rptr. 385, 494 P.2d 9 (1972).

This proposition does not completely resolve this case, but it is at the heart of it. Here two California law firms entered into retainer agreements with their client, Fidelity Savings and Loan Association…