By Jay KT
Picture a young boy walking alongside his father, down the cobblestone streets of Corktown in Detroit, handing out wooden rulers that state, “MADE IN THE USA,” while shaking hands with countless men and women lining those streets. It was the popular Labor Day Parade and this type of experience was common in the early life of Derek Miller, whose father was a State Senator. His dad often would stop to talk with strangers at local restaurants or in a convenience store, because these folks were constituents that wanted to say hello or one struggling with a problem. His Father listened. He promises to help. And then he did.
Those memories never left Derek. It became, in many ways, the blueprint for everything that followed. Today, Derek E. Miller Attorney and founder of D. Miller Law P.C. is a Michigan attorney with more than a decade of prosecutorial experience, a record of legislative achievement, and a private practice built to serve two of the most vulnerable populations in the legal system: people facing criminal charges and individuals seeking Social Security Disability benefits.
His path from the campaign trail to the courtroom to the State Legislature and back again is not a straight line. But it is a coherent one, shaped by a single sentiment: that the law exists to solve problems for real people, and that attorneys bear a responsibility to show up and do that work every day, whether anyone is watching or not.
Growing Up in a House of Public Service
Derek Miller did not stumble into law. He was drawn toward it from a specific, formative direction.
“My father was in politics when I was growing up,” Miller recalled. “He was a State Senator in the Michigan Legislature. I loved the idea that everyone in our community would reach out to him for help with whatever problem they were having and he would try to find a solution for them. I wanted to be that person.”
His father carried one professional regret openly. He had never earned his law degree. That admission planted a seed. Miller grew up watching his father walk into any room, from a judge’s chambers to a greasy spoon diner, and treat every person with the same warmth and genuine regard. “He would always say, ‘Derek, everyone loves a compliment,'” Miller reflected. “He would get up and hug the hostess, or tell the cook, ‘That was the best soup I’ve ever had.’ He made people feel special. He made them have pride in who they were and what they were doing.”
Both of his parents passed away in 2020. The loss deepened rather than diminished his drive. “Now I work so hard in honor of them and their memory,” he said. That motivation is not abstract for Miller. It shows up in how he prepares a case, how he greets a new client, and how he thinks about the kind of lawyer, and father, he wants to be.
From Prosecutor to Legislator: A Decade of Building Credibility From the Inside
Before Derek Miller ever hung a shingle for a private practice, he spent more than ten years as a prosecutor. That experience gave him something most defense attorneys simply don’t have: an inside view of how charging decisions get made and where cases fall apart.
“As a Prosecutor I met with detectives and decided how cases would be charged and tried,” Miller explained. “I always knew what aspects of the cases would be hardest to prove to a jury. Now as a defense lawyer, I know the conversations those prosecutors are having behind closed doors. I know where the holes are. Now it’s my job to shine a light on those weaknesses and open the eyes of the jury to true justice.”
His prosecutorial work led directly to one of his most significant accomplishments. After prosecuting and convicting a woman named Rachel Edwards. She had given a child her mental health medication to keep him confined indoors. Miller watched a judge issue a sentence that did not include jail time. Edwards went on to abuse another child, a boy named Wyatt, nearly killing him. The boy’s mother, Erica Hammel, and the previous victim’s mother, Cristyne Kadlitz, wanted a public registry to track individuals with a history of child abuse.
Miller, by then serving in the State Legislature, wrote the legislation himself. The bill, named Wyatt’s Law in honor of the boy who nearly lost his life, was eventually passed into law. It stands as a direct example of how his experience in the courtroom translated into policy that protected Michigan children long after any single case closed. “It was a Team effort. Erica and Cristyne would not take noanswer. And my colleagues in the House of Representatives, including initial co-sponsors, Rep.Rep. Vanessa Guerra. Finally, now Senator Kevin Hertel was the one that carried the baton and fought to get Wyatt’s Law passed.” Miller, a big sports fan, always believes more gets done with a Team mindset.
His time overseeing 60 Assistant Prosecutors as Chief of Operations also gave him a management perspective rare among trial attorneys. He understands how large legal offices function, where institutional pressure builds, and how leadership either elevates or diminishes the work of an entire team.
Building D. Miller Law: Defense and Disability Under One Roof
After his years in prosecution,Miller was offered an interesting opportunity during Covid to work in the freight logistics industry for Coyote Logistics , the third-largest freight broker in North America. Miller had a lot of friends from Michigan State, the Nation’s #1 logistics school, in the logistics profession. However, after over 3 years in the freight world, shipping cross border freight from Canada, throughout the US and over the Mexico border,Miller found himself missing the courtroom. The corporate world offered pace and competition, but it didn’t offer the chance to help people navigate legal crises.
So he came back. He founded D. Miller Law P.C., where the D stands for both Disability and Defense. The practice focuses on two distinct but complementary areas of law, experience and legal advocacy.
- Criminal defense representation for individuals facing charges, including those wrongfully accused
- Social Security Disability advocacy for clients who have been denied benefits
- Client-centered counsel rooted in listening first and fighting second
The choice to combine these two practice areas was deliberate. Many of the clients Miller sees face poverty and addiction, often at the same time. It’s easy to see a person caught shoplifting clothing and just see them as a petty thief. I know, because I often did when I was a Prosecutor. But often times, those people are stealing clothing for their children. These people are not, in Miller’s view, simply criminal defendants. They are people in crisis who need someone in their corner. His approach is to hear what clients are most worried about and then work to deliver on those specific concerns.
“I show up, I’m honest with them, and fight for their particular issue,” he said, “whether that’s clearing their name after being wrongfully accused or trying to get them social security benefits after being denied by the social security administration.”
What Ethical Leadership Actually Looks Like Day to Day
Ask Miller what ethical leadership means and he doesn’t reach for a textbook definition. He reaches back to high school football.
“I always remember my high school football coach preaching that character is built when nobody’s watching,” he said. “So often, clients are relying on us to work for them and be doing right by them even when they’re not with us. And that is what being ethical is.”
This philosophy runs through every aspect of how he operates as a Michigan attorney. Trust, in his view, is not announced. It’s accumulated. Every client interaction, every court appearance, every returned phone call adds or subtracts from a reputation that takes years to build and seconds to damage.
His principles for decision-making in difficult moments also trace back to his upbringing and his faith. “How I was raised, my faith in God and the example Jesus provided us have so much to do with how I try to live and face adversity,” he explained. “When things get tough you need to trust in the process. Success will come through hard work and doing things the right way, not taking shortcuts.”
He is equally direct about what separates strong attorneys from adequate ones. It comes down to willingness to be uncomfortable.
“People that aren’t afraid of a challenge,” he said. “Many people in this profession want to do what they’re comfortable with. That’s safe. And that’s fine. But, in order to grow professionally we have to be willing to be uncomfortable and to take on things we haven’t quite done before. I have always found that I learn the most when I need to reach out for help and challenge myself.”
Advice for Young Attorneys and the Legacy Derek Miller Is Building
Miller’s advice for attorneys early in their careers is grounded and specific.
- Seek out workplaces where real experience is available, not just supervised observation
- Ask to sit in client meetings and go to court, even when it is not required
- Show eagerness to learn, because supervisors notice it and clients benefit from it
- Treat every person with respect, regardless of what they are accused of doing
Those aren’t abstract principles to Miller. They’re habits he developed over years of public service leadership, prosecution, and private practice.
He is also thinking about legacy in a deeply personal way. D. Miller Law is growing. But alongside the practice, he is raising three daughters, and the two goals are not separate in his mind. “My hopes are to be as good a role model to them as my mom and dad were to me,” he said. “If I do that, maybe they’ll want to work with their dad one day. That would be special and a legacy I’d be proud of.”
The boy in the back seat of his father’s car grew into a man who has spent his career doing what his father always hoped he would: showing up for people when they need help most, and doing the work even when no one is watching.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For guidance specific to your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction. And, by all means, you can call D. Miller Law P.C. at 855-Let-D-Help and ask for Derek.
