State Bar
Active
License no. 192184
California Attorney License
Official agency record
The State Bar record lists David Lee Milligan as active and gives December 8, 1997 as his California admission date.
Verify license status and admission dateCredentials & Recognition
Credentials You Can Verify
Licensure, board certification, membership, professional training, ratings, selection history, and academic degrees are different kinds of information.
Each material item below links to the official record or public profile that supports it.
Read the Source, Not Just the Label
The strongest public proof is the current State Bar record: active status, admission date, and the listed Civil Trial Advocacy specialty.
Other items come from an official membership roster or from public attorney profiles. Those source types are identified so readers can give each item the weight it deserves.
Official Public Records
License and board certification
These two facts appear on Attorney Milligan’s official State Bar of California license record.
Certification
Civil Trial
NBTA specialty listing
Board Certified in Civil Trial Advocacy
National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA)
Attorney Milligan’s State Bar record lists Civil Trial Advocacy as a certified legal specialty through NBTA. NBTA publishes certification and recertification standards, and the American Bar Association lists NBTA’s Civil Trial Law program among its accredited lawyer-certification programs.
State Bar specialty listing
State Bar specialization guide
ABA accredited-program list
NBTA standards
This is a professional certification. It is separate from a law degree, membership, rating, or publication selection.
Membership & Professional Training
What each public source shows
The official ABOTA chapter roster verifies membership. Individual training details below are identified as public-profile entries where no issuer roster was located.
Official Chapter Roster
ABOTA Member
American Board of Trial Advocates
ABOTA’s San Joaquin Valley Chapter roster lists David L. Milligan. ABOTA says membership is invitation-only and its eligibility criteria include civil jury-trial experience as lead counsel. The public roster does not state his membership rank.
Public Profile Entry
ABOTA Trial College at Harvard Law School
Professional trial training · not a Harvard degree
Attorney Milligan’s public Justia profile lists completion of the ABOTA Trial College at Harvard Law School. ABOTA describes its Trial College as an intensive trial-advocacy program. The completion detail is supported here by the public profile, rather than an individual-attendee roster from ABOTA.
Public Profile Entries
NITA Master Advocate (Faculty Qualified) and Advocate
National Institute for Trial Advocacy professional-development designations
Attorney Milligan’s current Avvo profile lists “Master Advocate (Faculty Qualified)” and “Advocate” among his credentials. They are presented here as professional training or designations, separate from the NBTA board certification. The public attorney profile, rather than a NITA individual directory, is the supporting source for these entries.
Third-Party Profiles
Ratings and selection history
Each organization applies its own criteria. These profile displays are distinct from State Bar status and NBTA certification.
AV Preeminent
Martindale-Hubbell peer rating
The current Martindale-Hubbell profile displays an AV Preeminent peer rating and describes that label as its highest peer-rating standard.
Verify on Martindale-Hubbell10.0 “Superb”
Avvo profile rating
Attorney Milligan’s current Avvo profile displays a 10.0 “Superb” rating. Avvo controls the rating and explains its own rating levels.
Verify on Avvo2018–2021, 2024–2026
Super Lawyers selection years
The current Super Lawyers profile lists selections in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2024, 2025, and 2026.
Verify the selection historyRatings and selection histories can change. The linked profile is the source for each platform’s current display.
Academic Education
Public education entries
The State Bar identifies the law school. Martindale-Hubbell and Avvo public profiles provide the degree and year details.
Law Degree
J.D., San Joaquin College of Law · 1997
The State Bar record names San Joaquin College of Law. The Martindale-Hubbell and Avvo profiles list the J.D. and 1997 graduation year.
Undergraduate Degree
B.A., California State University, Fresno · 1993
The Martindale-Hubbell and Avvo public profiles list a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Fresno in 1993.
These degree details are public-profile entries, not registrar transcripts. The ABOTA Trial College item above is professional training and is not presented as a Harvard academic degree.
Biography & Service
Additional public-profile entries
These entries are retained as profile-reported biography. The supporting public profile is linked directly; they are not presented as agency or issuer verification.
CCTLA Leadership
Public Avvo profile entry
The profile lists Attorney Milligan as a past president of the Central California Trial Lawyers Association. This is presented as a profile-reported leadership entry, not an issuer award record.
View the profile entriesUnited States Navy Service
Public Avvo biography entry
The profile reports United States Navy service from 1985 to 1992 and an honorable discharge in 1992.
View the public biographyPilot and Volunteer Service
Public Avvo biography and work entries
The profile lists Attorney Milligan as an instrument-rated pilot and reports volunteer search-and-rescue pilot service with the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department from 2001 to 2004.
View the profile entriesSource Transparency
Different sources answer different questions
Use the State Bar for current license status and the listed legal specialty. Use ABOTA’s roster for membership. Use each rating or selection platform for its current display.
Training, education, and biography details sourced from public attorney profiles are labeled that way, allowing readers to distinguish an official record from a profile entry or platform display.
“The very essence of civil liberty certainly consists in the right of every individual to claim the protection of the laws, whenever he receives an injury.”
Chief Justice John Marshall · Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Common Questions About These Credentials
What does the State Bar record verify?
The current State Bar record lists David Lee Milligan, license number 192184, as active; gives December 8, 1997 as the admission date; and lists Civil Trial Advocacy as a certified legal specialty through the National Board of Trial Advocacy.
Is Civil Trial Advocacy certification a law degree?
No. It is a professional certification. NBTA publishes separate certification and recertification standards, and the State Bar license record provides the direct public verification for David Milligan’s current specialty listing.
Is ABOTA Trial College at Harvard a Harvard degree?
No. The public Justia profile lists completion of the ABOTA Trial College at Harvard Law School. It is described here as professional trial training, not an academic degree from Harvard University.
Are ratings and selection histories the same as certification?
No. Martindale-Hubbell’s peer rating, Avvo’s profile rating, and Super Lawyers’ selection history are separate third-party measures with their own methods. They are shown with direct profile links and should be read separately from licensure and board certification.