What to do when your attorney stops responding

The short checklist

• Move to writing immediately — email or letter, not voicemail.
• Set a specific date for a response, not “at your earliest convenience.”
• Copy the firm or its managing partner, not only the individual.
• Request your complete client file in writing.
• Pull the docket yourself and check for missed deadlines.
• Calendar every upcoming date independently of counsel.
• Keep a dated log of every attempt at contact.
• Know that the state bar complaint process and substitution both exist.

How long is too long?

Judge it against the deadline, not the calendar. Two weeks of silence in a matter with nothing pending is inattentive. Two days of silence with a filing due Friday is an emergency.

Escalate immediately, regardless of elapsed time, if a court date is approaching, a settlement offer is expiring, opposing counsel is contacting you directly, or you received something from the court you do not understand.

What should the first written follow-up say?

Short, dated, factual, and specific. No accusations — you want a response, not a fight, and this message may later be evidence of diligence.

• The matter name and case number.
• What you asked for and when you asked.
• A specific response deadline — a named date, typically three to five business days.
• A statement that you will otherwise request your file and consider alternatives.
• A copy to the firm’s general address or managing partner.

Copying the firm is the step most people skip, and it is frequently the one that produces a reply.

Can you get your file?

Generally yes. Client files are ordinarily the client’s, and a request for a copy should not be conditioned on the relationship continuing. Specifics vary by jurisdiction, and some firms may charge for copying.

Ask in writing for the complete file: pleadings, correspondence, discovery, the fee agreement, and billing records. Even if the relationship recovers, you now hold your own record of the matter.

How do you check whether something was actually missed?

Do not wait to be told. Court dockets are largely public, and you can read your own.

• Federal matters — PACER carries filings and docket entries.
• State matters — most systems offer an online case portal; some counties require a clerk visit.
• The clerk’s office — will confirm what has been filed and what is set.

Compare the docket against what you were told. A gap between the two is the single most useful fact you can gather.

When does this become a bar complaint?

Silence alone is usually a communication problem. It becomes a discipline question when there is concrete harm or missing money — a missed deadline, a dismissed claim, an unreturned unearned fee, or trust-account irregularities.

Every state bar has a complaint process and most publish a consumer-facing intake line. Filing is not a substitute for protecting the matter itself: a complaint does not stop a clock that is running.

How do you change counsel without damaging the case?

Sequence matters. The two mistakes are firing counsel before securing a replacement, and letting a deadline pass while deciding.

1. Identify and consult replacement counsel first.
2. Confirm the new firm can meet the next deadline.
3. Request the file and account for funds held in trust.
4. Execute the substitution paperwork the court requires.
5. Verify on the docket that the substitution was actually entered.

If a hearing is imminent, replacement counsel may need to seek a continuance — raise that in the first conversation, not after.

What does the escalation ladder look like?

In order, least to most disruptive:

Last reviewed: 6 September 2026