Opinion
December 8, 1998
Appeal from the Supreme Court, New York County (Herman Cahn, J.).
A client has the right "to terminate the attorney-client relationship at any time with or without cause" ( Matter of Cooperman, 83 N.Y.2d 465, 472; see also, Demov, Morris, Levin Shein v. Glantz, 53 N.Y.2d 553, 556). Plaintiff, who does not claim to fall within the two limited exceptions to the rule ( see, Atkins O'Brien v. ISS International Serv. Sys., 252 A.D.2d 446, 448) may not circumvent the general rule by recasting his cause of action as a prima facie tort ( see, Ullman v. Norma Kamali, Inc., 207 A.D.2d 691, 692; Fisher v. Maxwell Communications Corp., 205 A.D.2d 356, 357). Plaintiff failed to preserve his current claim that leave to replead should have been granted, which in any case would have been inappropriate ( see, Ceres v. Shearson Lehman Bros., 227 A.D.2d 222).
Concur — Sullivan, J. P., Rosenberger, Wallach and Mazzarelli, JJ.