David Eduard Mills ’99, a 34-year-old operating a solo appellate law practice that he runs out of his Cleveland apartment, learned today that he won a Supreme Court victory for his client.
Mills had never argued a case before the U.S. Supreme Court before his Nov. 1 appearance.
Mills’ client, Michelle Ortiz, a former Ohio inmate, had won a $625,000 judgment against state prison officials, but it was overturned by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.
Ortiz had claimed a prison official did nothing after she complained of threats by a male guard who later sexually assaulted her. Then when she complained again, she was placed in solitary confinement.
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| David E. Mills graduated with honors from the University of Michigan Law School in 2002. (Photo courtesy of Cleveland Plain Dealer) |
The U.S. Supreme Court reinstated Ortiz’s verdict today in a decision based on civil procedure.
“I feel great but I think my initial thought was feeling happy and relieved for Michelle,” Mills told the ABA Journal shortly after the ruling. “She was, I would say, overwhelmed, obviously ecstatic.”
Today’s unanimous opinion by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg held that a party may not appeal a summary judgment denial after a full trial on the merits, and the 6th Circuit should not have overturned the judgment on that basis.
Publicity surrounding Mills’ work on the case, Ortiz v. Jordan, has led to more work. Several lawyers have since consulted with Mills on potential Supreme Court cases, and a couple of their cert petitions are pending.
Now he’s looking ahead to the future, according to the ABA Journal. “It certainly doesn’t hurt to have a decisive victory,” said Mills, who turned 34 earlier this month.
• Look for a profile of Mills in the next 51 Scene
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