Nelson Miller

Associate Dean and Associate Professor
B.A., highest honors, Indiana University 1984
J.D., cum laude, University of Michigan Law School 1987

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Associate Dean Nelson Miller practiced civil litigation in a small-firm setting for 16 years from 1987 to 2004 before joining the Cooley faculty. During that time, he argued two cases before the Michigan Supreme Court, dozens of cases in the Michigan Court of Appeals, and cases before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He also wrote briefs filed in the United States Supreme Court.

He won and defended multi-million dollar jury trials, and tried cases in products liability, personal injury, airliner and helicopter crashes, civil rights, securities, employment, real estate, and business disputes, in the state and federal courts, representing individuals, private corporations, non-profit corporations, government agencies, public schools, and public and private universities.

Associate Dean Miller has served the State Bar of Michigan in several capacities including as an appointed and elected member of its Representative Assembly and an appointed member of its Law-Related Education Committee, Equal Access Initiative Committee, and Criminal Issues Initiative.

His other public service includes writing United States Supreme Court amicus briefs for public interest organizations, providing pro bono legal services to individuals at community centers in West Michigan, forming and advising charitable and religious non-profit organizations, serving as president and treasurer of a public charter school academy, and serving as president of the Kent County Legal Assistance Center.

Associate Dean Miller has written practical materials on torts, civil procedure, damages, and government representation, in book chapters for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education and articles for the Michigan Bar Journal. His scholarly publications for law reviews have been in the areas of torts, civil procedure, international law, constitutional law, university law, professional responsibility, bioethics, and legal history and philosophy.

He has also written a manual and rating system for charitable non-profit organizations, edited a manual for pro bono legal aid, and presented on pro se legal services at the ABA/NLADA annual conference.

In February 2005, the State Bar of Michigan recognized him as a Citizen Lawyer and in September 2005 gave him the John W. Cummiskey Award for pro bono service.

At Cooley, he teaches Torts I and II, Professional Responsibility, No-Fault Insurance Law, Advanced Professional Ethics, Tax-Exempt Organizations, and Health Law, and is the Associate Dean at the Grand Rapids campus.

Bibliography

• Articles
• Books and Chapters in Books
• Book Reviews and Other Short Works