When you call this office, you reach me — not a screener, not a rotating associate. I'm Michael Phillips, and for more than thirty years I've done one thing: defend people.
I went to law school to help people, especially in their hardest moments. In all that time, I have never used what I know to put a person in jail or make a life harder. I've only ever stood on one side of the courtroom. Yours.
A career built in the courtroom
My path started at Santa Clara University School of Law, where I earned my law degree in 1987 and was named Best Oral Advocate. Even then, I knew I belonged in a courtroom. I taught middle school for a couple of years, clerked for a Superior Court judge in Seattle, and then stepped into the work that shaped me: the public defender's office. There I handled the office's most difficult cases as a senior trial attorney — which is where I truly learned to try a case. I went into private practice in 2000, and I've spent the twenty-five-plus years since defending people across Nevada County.
Across that career, I've taken more than a hundred jury trials to verdict — from driving offenses to murder, and nearly everything in between. Any lawyer who tries cases knows what it costs: the preparation is relentless, and you give a little of yourself to every client you stand up for. I wouldn't trade it. I still love being in the courtroom.
Why that matters for your case
A lot of lawyers handle criminal cases. Far fewer have carried more than a hundred all the way to a verdict. That experience changes how a case is defended — I know where these cases break, and I know how to take a weak one to a jury rather than simply pleading it out.
It also matters which side of the courtroom that experience was built on. When you prosecute a case, the police are your witnesses — they sit on your side of the table. I've spent more than thirty years on the other side of it, cross-examining those same officers and the witnesses the State puts up. Questioning the government's case — pressing the point an officer would rather not make, finding the weakness no one volunteers — is a craft you build from the defense table and nowhere else. It's the craft your case needs. And after three decades in these courtrooms, the respect I've earned from the prosecutors and judges who handle these cases does more for you than any claim of inside connections.
More than 100 jury trials, taken to verdict — from driving offenses to murder
Avvo rating: 9.8 "Superb"
25+ years in private practice — defending people since 2000
Former senior trial attorney, Public Defender's Office — handled the office's most difficult cases
Never a prosecutor. Never for an insurance company.
J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law, 1987 — named Best Oral Advocate
Licensed in California and Washington · State Bar No. 181512
How I practice
My practice is personal, by design. I take only a select number of cases at a time, so each client gets my full attention. You work directly with me from the first call to the last. The fees are flat and agreed up front. And you'll always get the truth about your case — what it's worth and what's realistic — said plainly, with respect. Good people end up here, and you'll be treated like one.
Roots in this community
A small-town law practice is what drew me here from Seattle. I wanted to know the people I represent and to be part of this place, not a stranger passing through. I'm an avid Nordic skier and a U.S. Ski & Snowboard certified instructor, and when I'm not in the courtroom you'll usually find me hiking or fishing with my dog.
In a community this size, reputation matters — yours and mine alike. I handle every case with discretion, and I treat every client the way a neighbor should be treated: with honesty and respect.
Why this work matters to me
One hard moment shouldn't define the rest of a person's life. I went into this work to stand between people and a system that can feel overwhelming — and to do it with skill, honesty, and compassion. After thirty years, that's still why I do it.
If you're facing a criminal charge in Nevada County, let's talk. The first conversation is free and confidential — and you'll speak with me directly. Call (530) 265-0186.
