Fresno Personal Injury Lawyer · Serving California
When everything is on the line,
David L. Milligan is Board Certified in Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Our Fresno firm reviews serious-injury and wrongful-death cases throughout California, with personal attention to the evidence, your needs, and the work your case requires.
Start with the right conversation
Find help for a serious injury, discuss trial counsel, or explore our limited pro bono jury-trial program.
For injured people and families
Serious collisions, documented brain and spinal injuries, burns, severe dog attacks, and wrongful death. We review the facts, medical evidence, potential sources of recovery, and resources needed to pursue each matter.
Request a Serious-Injury Review →For referring attorneys
Discuss a serious-injury or wrongful-death referral, or possible trial association. The firm considers the record, remaining preparation, requested role, and availability before accepting an engagement.
Discuss Trial Counsel or a Referral →For self-represented plaintiffs
A narrow program for qualifying short California civil jury trials, at no attorney’s fee. You may send an earlier preliminary inquiry; an inquiry does not reserve a trial date or change your responsibilities.
Explore the Jury-Trial Program →Looking for our pro bono California DMV hearing program? Read its separate criteria →
Injury matters: no attorney’s fee without a recovery; clients remain responsible for advanced case costs under the written fee agreement. Pro bono programs charge no attorney’s fee; their separate eligibility and cost terms apply.
A careful review before a commitment
We consider how the injury happened, the available liability and medical evidence, the lasting effects on your life, and potential insurance or other sources of recovery. We also assess the investigation, expert work, and time the matter may require. A diagnosis, collision type, or insurance limit alone does not decide whether we can help.
You do not need to know your case’s value or the other party’s insurance limits before contacting us. A missing record or unanswered question calls for review, not a conclusion about the merits.
Professional Background
Explore the certifying bodies, training programs, professional organizations, and service reflected in Attorney Milligan’s background.
Board-certified in civil trial advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy — a certification shown on his official State Bar of California record — and listed as a member on ABOTA’s official chapter roster.
National Board of Trial Advocacy · ABA-accredited
Listed on the State Bar record
American Board of Trial Advocates
Official San Joaquin Valley roster
Profile-reported completion
Professional training · not a Harvard degree
National Institute for Trial Advocacy
Public-profile entry
Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review
Attorney peer reviews
Avvo Attorney Ratings
Avvo Rating: 10.0 (“Superb”)
Super Lawyers
Selected to the list, 2018–2021 and 2024–2026
Profile-reported leadership
Past president · public Avvo profile
State Bar of California · no. 192184
Active · admitted December 8, 1997
1985–1992 · public-profile biography
Honorably discharged · profile-reported
San Joaquin College of Law
J.D., 1997 · public-profile entry
California State University, Fresno
B.A., 1993 · public-profile entry
In our clients’ own words
A California catastrophic-injury trial boutique
Selective practice · prepared for verdict
Swipe to explore the credentials
Personal attention. Careful preparation. A trial lawyer to guide you.
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Those results were dependent on the facts of each matter, and results will differ if based on different facts.
Why the Severely Injured Choose This Firm
For each accepted engagement, the written agreement and the case’s needs shape how work is allocated. The attorney and office apply professional care to the evidence, preparation, communication, and decisions the matter requires.
Insurance carriers keep track of which lawyers actually try cases. Trial preparation includes evaluating evidence, anticipating disputed issues, and explaining the choices ahead. Whether a matter settles or proceeds to trial depends on its facts and the client’s decisions.
Board certification, membership, professional training, ratings, education, and service. The wall identifies the organization or public source for each item.
Your attorney and our office will explain the agreed work and how to contact us as the case progresses. We discuss material developments and the decisions your case requires.
Serious injury matters may require accident reconstruction, medical expertise, economics, or life-care planning. We assess the evidence, appropriate experts, potential sources of recovery, and trial preparation required for the accepted engagement.
The firm considers suitable serious-injury matters throughout California and handles California DMV hearings within its stated scope. Venue, case needs, and the firm’s capacity are evaluated before an engagement. Attorney Milligan has been admitted in California for more than 28 years.
David L. Milligan · California Civil Trial Attorney
About the Attorney
The State Bar of California records December 8, 1997 as my admission date. In each accepted engagement, my office works to understand the evidence, explain the choices ahead, and serve the client with diligence, integrity, and respect.
The firm currently considers suitable serious-injury and wrongful-death matters throughout California and handles California DMV hearings within its stated scope. Each inquiry is reviewed for the facts, venue, conflicts, case needs, and current capacity. If an engagement is accepted, the written agreement defines the work.
What We Take On
Each pursued to verdict when needed. We represent injured individuals against companies, government entities, and the people responsible.
Severe, life-altering injuries — including serious car, truck and motorcycle collisions — cases evaluated on the full factual and medical record.
Administrative hearings in defense of your driving privilege — treated like the trials they are, and handled pro bono for indigent Californians. We do not guarantee any result — outcomes depend on the facts of each matter.
A narrow public-service program: in rare, qualifying cases, the firm tries a small civil jury trial — at no attorney’s fee — for a plaintiff who has carried the case alone.
What we do not handle: medical or dental malpractice, workers’
compensation claims (though we do handle work-related third-party civil claims), or
claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The firm is also not accepting new
institutional-abuse or environmental / toxic-exposure matters — the State
Bar of California’s Lawyer Referral Services, (866) 442-2529, can connect you
with counsel who handles that work.
Past results — including administrative hearing outcomes — do not guarantee future results.
In Their Own Words
Selected client testimonials and professional comments. Explore video stories and review sources on our client-stories page.
David Milligan has generously donated his time and aircraft to transport my daughter and me to her medical appointments. My daughter’s care would not be possible without his generosity.
Mr. Milligan cares about his clients.
After two law offices took my case and then dropped it, David Milligan took it over and handled everything above and beyond my expectations. Even when I moved to Puerto Rico mid-case, he did not miss a beat.
I have dealt with many attorneys throughout my 12-plus years of practicing as an attorney myself, and David is among the best.
My doctor took away my DMV license. Mr. Milligan took my case for free.
He is in control, and he is not afraid of anyone in the courtroom.
Over four years he consistently checked in and kept us informed. His professionalism and compassion stood out — he exceeded our expectations in every way, always genuinely caring about my wife and me.
Watch client stories and explore Google, Martindale-Hubbell and Avvo review sources →
Read client reviews on Google →Testimonials reflect the experiences of individual clients and are not a guarantee, warranty, or prediction of the outcome of any other matter. The results described were dependent on the facts of each client’s matter, and results will differ if based on different facts (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 6158.3).
How It Begins
Call (559) 439-7500 or use the contact form below. Tell us what happened, in your own words. There is no obligation.
Our office reviews your inquiry under applicable professional confidentiality duties. If it is a matter the firm is able to help with, someone from our office will contact you. If we cannot assist, the State Bar’s Lawyer Referral Services can help you look for other counsel. Pro bono inquiries follow their separate written-inquiry and response policies. Please do not wait on our review to protect your rights or deadlines.
If the firm and client sign a written engagement, the agreed work may include investigation, experts, records, negotiation, and trial when warranted. Injury cases are handled on a contingency-fee basis: if there is no recovery, you owe no attorney’s fee, but you remain responsible for case costs the firm advanced, as provided in the written fee agreement.
Initial Review · No Obligation
If you or someone you love has been seriously injured, the sooner we hear from you, the more we can preserve and protect. We represent the seriously injured throughout California. Evidence fades. Deadlines run. Insurers are already working. So are we.
Call the Firm
(559) 439-7500Posted office hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Leave a message or use the inquiry form. If a deadline may be imminent, say so and do not rely on an unanswered inquiry.
Found us online? Our web inquiry line: (559) 272-4964
The Office
Law Offices of David L. Milligan, APCHours
Monday – Friday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PMInjury cases are handled on a contingency-fee basis: if there is no recovery, you owe no attorney’s fee, but you remain responsible for case costs the firm advanced, as provided in the written fee agreement.
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