Skip to main content

Practice Areas

What we actually do

Serious-injury representation and two separate limited pro bono programs.

The cases we take →  ·  For referring attorneys →

Here is the short version of what kinds of cases this firm actually handles — and the kinds we do not.

This page describes the firm’s practice and experience. It does not necessarily mean the firm is accepting new cases in every category shown. For the matters currently being accepted, see the cases we take.

Client experience and public proof →

The Short Answer

We represent catastrophically injured people against the companies, government entities, and individuals responsible. We defend driving privileges at California DMV hearings. And in rare, qualifying cases, we try small civil jury trials pro bono for plaintiffs who have been representing themselves.

David L. Milligan is Board Certified in Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. The work undertaken in each matter depends on the accepted scope, the client’s objectives, the evidence, and available capacity.

Pillar I

Catastrophic personal injury

Life-altering injuries — the cases where the medical record alone tells a story, and where a lifetime of care is on the line.

Catastrophic injury cases are not ordinary car-accident cases. The medical proof has to be built rigorously. The life-care plan has to be prepared by credentialed experts. The damages model has to hold up under defense expert review, deposition, and trial. These are the cases where the level of trial preparation for which David L. Milligan is Board Certified in Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy actually matters — and they are the substrate of the firm’s practice.

Public attorney profiles describe a science-focused undergraduate background, an instrument rating, and ABOTA Trial College professional training. The State Bar record gives December 8, 1997 as his California admission date. See the credential sources and their scope.

Representative case types

Discuss a catastrophic injury case →

Pillar II

California DMV hearings

When the DMV moves against your driving privilege, the hearing is a trial in miniature — and we treat it like one.

A DMV administrative hearing has a hearing officer, evidence, witnesses, cross-examination, and legal argument — usually by phone or video, on a short clock, with your license on the line. Most license holders walk in alone, against a record they have never seen. We obtain the evidence in advance, prepare the testimony, and hold the DMV to its burden — the same way this office prepares any trial. This work is done pro bono — at no attorney’s fee — and only for indigent Californians who cannot afford counsel. We do not guarantee any result — outcomes depend on the facts of each matter; preparation is the constant.

Because most DMV hearings proceed by telephone or video, we represent license holders throughout California. These are administrative civil proceedings — this is not a criminal-defense practice.

Proceedings we handle

DMV Hearings in Detail Discuss a DMV hearing →

Pillar III · Public Service

Pro bono jury trials for self-represented litigants

Earlier preliminary inquiries about the pro bono jury program are welcome. Preliminary screening is separate from accepting representation: it does not reserve a trial date, change any deadline, or transfer responsibility for the case. The engagement criteria below still apply.

You carried your own case to the eve of trial. In rare, qualifying cases, we will try it to the jury for you — at no attorney’s fee.

This is a narrow public-service program for plaintiffs prosecuting their own California civil case in propria persona. If the case is set for a jury trial, the mandatory settlement conference has failed, the court’s pre-trial document deadline is still at least five days away, the plaintiff’s trial subpoenas are already served, and the case is small enough to prepare in a matter of days, the firm will consider substituting in for one limited purpose: to try the case to the jury, through verdict. A verdict, settlement, mistrial, or continuance does not by itself make withdrawal effective or automatically add a new trial setting. The firm remains counsel of record until the applicable substitution or relief order is filed, served, and effective, and will take reasonable steps required to avoid reasonably foreseeable prejudice. Any further representation requires a new written agreement.

The firm takes the case as it finds it, promises no result, and accepts very few matters — subject to its criteria, conflict checks, capacity, and professional judgment. Because of expected volume, the firm responds only to inquiries it is considering: if you do not hear back, the firm is unable to take your case, and no reply is coming. Written inquiries only.

The criteria — every one must be true

  • California civil case set for a jury trial — not a bench trial, not an arbitration — with the jury already demanded and the jury fees already paid (CCP § 631)
  • You are the plaintiff, currently representing yourself in propria persona
  • The mandatory settlement conference has already been held and failed
  • The court’s deadline to file and serve pre-trial documents is at least five days away — and the whole case is preparable in a matter of days
  • All trial subpoenas already served — witnesses, records (duces tecum), and foundational witnesses
  • All costs are the client’s — the firm pays none; the trial court reporter arranged and paid in advance
  • The offered scope covers the agreed pre-trial documents and accepted short jury trial. Discovery, earlier litigation, case-repair work, subpoena service and cures, continued trials, retrials, and post-trial work are outside the offered scope. The firm accepts only a matter it reasonably determines can be tried competently and diligently within that scope. Material later changes require consultation and compliance with professional duties and applicable court procedures, but do not automatically expand the engagement to a full case workup; the firm may seek withdrawal or other appropriate relief.
  • For plaintiffs who intend to try the case to a verdict — not to use a trial lawyer’s appearance as settlement leverage (the decision to settle always remains the client’s)
  • Trial only: agreed pre-trial documents and the accepted short jury trial. Continued trials, retrials, and post-trial work require a new agreement; counsel-of-record status ends only through an effective substitution or other applicable relief
Full Program Criteria & How to Ask

What we do not handle

Being honest about what this firm does not do is part of being honest about what it does well. We do not handle:

  • Medical malpractice or dental malpractice — a specialized practice area with its own statute framework (MICRA) and expert-witness requirements. We refer these cases to attorneys who specialize.
  • Workers’ compensation claims — a separate system with a specialized workers’ compensation bar. We do handle work-related third-party civil claims — civil lawsuits against a company or person other than the injured worker’s employer.
  • Civil rights claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 — federal civil-rights litigation with its own immunity and procedural framework. We refer these cases to attorneys who concentrate in that work.
  • New institutional-abuse or institutional-accountability matters — including sexual abuse, juvenile-facility, care-facility, and sex-trafficking claims. The firm is not accepting new cases in this area; informational pages remain on this site, and the State Bar of California’s Lawyer Referral Services, (866) 442-2529, can connect you with counsel who handles this work. Do not wait — deadlines in these cases can be short.
  • New environmental or toxic-exposure matters — including groundwater contamination, pesticide exposure, and wildfire claims. The firm is not accepting new cases in this area either; the State Bar referral line above can help.
  • Criminal defense.
  • Family law, probate, estate planning, business transactions, real estate transactions, and immigration matters.

Referring a matter to counsel who concentrates in it is not a failure of the firm. It is often the right answer.

For Referring Attorneys

Co-counsel & referrals welcome

The firm actively welcomes co-counsel and referral relationships with California attorneys whose clients have a catastrophic injury matter outside the referring attorney’s regular practice — and serves as trial counsel for lawyers who want a Board-Certified trial specialist to try the case they have worked up.

Referral fee arrangements must comply with California Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5.1. See the attorney-referral page for the firm’s approach. The firm has a long-standing record of working cooperatively with referring attorneys on trial preparation, expert selection, deposition strategy, and settlement negotiation.

The easiest way to begin is a short call or email with the basic case facts, the statute-of-limitations posture, and the venue. No obligation to refer; no intake paperwork on the front end.

Call (559) 439-7500 Email lawyer@callegal.com
“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 Our Practice

Does the firm handle medical malpractice?

No. Medical and dental malpractice cases require specialized expertise the firm does not provide. We are happy to refer.

What about workers’ compensation claims?

We do not handle workers’ compensation claims directly. We do handle work-related third-party civil claims — for example, a worker injured by negligence of a non-employer party at a job site.

How does the firm decide whether to accept a case?

Suitability depends on the facts, conflicts of interest, relevant dates, jurisdiction, requested work, and available capacity. An inquiry does not accept a matter or transfer responsibility for a deadline. See the current cases-we-take page for practice boundaries and the separate pro bono program conditions.

Do you accept referrals from other attorneys?

Yes. We accept co-counsel arrangements with other attorneys whose cases are well-suited to our trial practice. Fee-sharing complies with California Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5.1.

What kinds of DMV matters do you handle?

California DMV Driver Safety hearings — license suspension and revocation, negligent-operator (NOTS) point-count hearings, and medical reexamination proceedings — handled pro bono, at no attorney’s fee, for indigent Californians who cannot afford counsel, statewide by phone or video. Strict criteria and written inquiries only. The scope is the hearing through the decision, and acceptance is for the hearing date then set — if the hearing is continued or rescheduled before it begins (unless the firm alone initiated and requested it), the new date is outside the accepted scope and the ending process begins, subject to professional duties and any required department or hearing-officer permission. Representation continues until termination is effective. A new date requires a new written inquiry, screened again against the firm’s calendar. If the hearing begins on the accepted date but is continued to another session for a reason other than a continuance initiated and requested solely by the firm, the firm may elect by prompt written notice to end the engagement, subject to its professional duties and any required department or hearing-officer permission; if it does not elect, it continues through the last session and the decision. No departmental reviews, appeals, writs of administrative mandamus, or post-hearing motions; their deadlines are explained on the DMV page but are outside the program. If any criminal investigation, arrest, citation, charge, prosecution, or express indication from law enforcement or a prosecutor that criminal charges may be filed arises from the same event, the firm will not accept the DMV matter unless the applicant is represented by criminal defense counsel and the firm receives that counsel’s written statement recommending both that the applicant proceed with the DMV hearing and give sworn testimony at it. This is a condition of acceptance only — not a waiver of any privilege or a promise to testify — and the testimony decision must be revisited with the applicant and criminal defense counsel when testimony is considered. The firm does not represent the applicant in the criminal matter. These are administrative civil proceedings — the firm does not practice criminal defense.

Who qualifies for the pro bono jury trial program?

A self-represented (in propria persona) plaintiff in a California civil case that is set for a jury trial — not a bench trial or arbitration — whose mandatory settlement conference has failed, whose court deadline to file and serve pre-trial documents is still at least five days away, whose trial subpoenas are already served, and whose case is small enough to be prepared in a matter of days. The firm considers an earlier preliminary written inquiry, but final acceptance still requires the stated readiness criteria and a signed limited-scope agreement. The offered scope covers the agreed pre-trial documents and accepted short jury trial. Discovery, earlier litigation, case-repair work, subpoena service and cures, continued trials, retrials, and post-trial work are outside the offered scope. The firm accepts only a matter it reasonably determines can be tried competently and diligently within that scope. Material later changes require consultation and compliance with professional duties and applicable court procedures, but do not automatically expand the engagement to a full case workup; the firm may seek withdrawal or other appropriate relief. A verdict, settlement, mistrial, or continuance does not by itself make withdrawal effective or automatically add a new trial setting. The firm remains counsel of record until the applicable substitution or relief order is filed, served, and effective, and will take reasonable steps required to avoid reasonably foreseeable prejudice. Any further representation requires a new written agreement. The firm may decline before signing an engagement. Sending an inquiry does not by itself create an attorney-client relationship or transfer responsibility for any deadline. Representation is accepted through a written limited-scope agreement signed by the client and the firm; the firm becomes counsel of record when its substitution is filed. The five-day interval before the applicable pre-trial-document deadline is a firm acceptance criterion, not a universal California filing deadline. Very few cases are accepted, and the firm responds only to inquiries it is considering — if you do not hear back, the firm is unable to take your case. Full criteria: the pro bono jury trials page.

Does the firm still accept institutional-abuse or environmental-contamination cases?

No. The firm is not accepting new institutional-abuse or institutional-accountability matters, or new environmental or toxic-exposure matters. Informational pages remain on this site, but new matters in those areas should be directed to the State Bar of California’s Lawyer Referral Services at (866) 442-2529.