About David

A middle-aged man with a bald head and blue eyes, wearing a dark gray blazer, a dark blue shirt, and a purple tie, standing outdoors next to a large tree with textured bark and green leaves, with a suburban neighborhood in the background and a partly cloudy sky.

David has been working in the child welfare field since 1996. Throughout his time, he has represented everyone who could possibly appear in a courtroom, including the child welfare agency, children, parents, relatives, caregivers, tribes, CASA, and the California Judicial Branch. 

David began his career as an Assistant Attorney General, representing Arizona's child welfare agency in dependency cases. Upon moving to California, David represented children before taking a position as the initial supervising attorney of Parent Advocates of Sacramento, where he represented and supervised attorneys representing parents. 

In 2005, David served as a Senior Attorney with California’s Administrative Office of the Courts, Center for Families Children and the Courts (CFCC), where he developed statewide curriculum for attorneys and court professionals engaged in juvenile law practice, and represented the California judiciary on a number of state and national boards and work-groups dedicated to improving attorney representation and child welfare systems. In 2012, David co-founded and served as Chief Operating Officer of Dependency Legal Services, a non-profit that provided legal representation to children and families in nine Northern and Central California counties. David transitioned to Of Counsel in 2021, where he maintains his private practice to this day. 

In addition to his work representing clients, David serves as a consultant with the American Bar Association’s National Resource Center for Juvenile and Legal Issues and member of their Parent Attorney Representation Project Steering Committee. David sits on the Governing Board of United Family Advocates and the Council for the Children's Advocacy Institute, both being bipartisan organizations dedicated to improving how our nation cares for its most vulnerable population. David was the founding Editor of Chief of the Dependency Quick Guide, a reference guide for attorneys representing children and families in California's dependency courtrooms, and a contributing editor to the first-ever nationally published book on representing parents in child welfare cases.

David is licensed to practice law in California, Arizona and the Pascua Yaqui Nation. He holds a bachelor’s in journalism and music from the University of Florida and his JD from the University of Arizona. When not practicing law, David can be seen around the greater Sacramento area playing piano at local venues.