A Marsden motion is a legal document, brought by a defendant and filed with the court, for the purpose of firing a defendant's court-appointed attorney (usually a public defender). The name of the motion comes from a real California court case, People v. Marsden. A defendant typically brings the motion because he wants to fire his public defender for one of the following reasons: inadequate or ineffective assistance of counsel, legal malpractice, or there is a conflict between the attorney and defendant that substantially interferes with the lawyer's representation.