Firm Leadership

Robert Mills

Robert Mills received his bachelor's degree in philosophy from the University of California at Berkeley in 1971, and his law degree from Golden Gate University School of Law in 1974. Mr. Mills founded the Mills Law Firm to represent investors, consumers, and tort victims nationwide; the firm specializes in class actions and public interest litigation in consumer fraud, securities, employment law, product liability, environmental law, and breaches of fiduciary duty involving trusts and limited partnerships.

Since 1991, the Mills Law Firm has initiated cases which have recovered over a billion dollars in cash and value for clients and class members.

In addition to his law practice, Mr. Mills has extensive experience as an entrepreneur in the business and investment arena. He founded and operated a successful development firm which refurbrished historic buildings and a securities brokerage firm, which quickly became one of the nation's largest traders of investment partnerships. Mr. Mills has also managed, underwritten, and sponsored investment partnerships, written prospectuses, negotiated acquisitions, appraised a variety of complex investment interests and has served as an expert witness in securities litigation.

Mr. Mills has published articles concerning investment, tax, consumer and class actions, and is recognized by the financial media as an authority on investment, partnership and liability issues. He has taught courses at San Francisco State University, serves as a speaker for educational and professional organizations, and has appeared on radio and television talk shows.

His extensive business experience and legal background give Mr. Mills a perspective that is invaluable in discovering, understanding, and winning complex cases involving consumer and investment fraud.

In addition to being a member at the State Bar of California, Mr. Mills is admitted to practice before many different U.S. District and Courts of Appeal across the nation. Mr. Mills is also a member of the National Association of Consumer Attorneys and the Association of Business Trial Lawyers.

Carolyn Beasley Burton

Named as one of the best lawyers in the Bay Area by Bay Area Lawyer Magazine, Carolyn represents clients in a wide variety of substantive areas including employment law, misappropriation of trade secrets, trademark law, unfair business practices, and business contracting/negotiation.

Carolyn began her legal career trying criminal cases on behalf of the federal government with the US Attorney’s Office before joining Morrison & Foerster’s litigation department.  While there, she earned several important jury verdicts, including one of the largest verdicts ever rendered against police officers in the state of California for the wrongful death of an immigrant farm worker, and numerous related constitutional violations.    

Carolyn has been litigating major class actions since 2001, and was a member of the litigation team in a landmark case against Wal-Mart that yielded a $172 million dollar verdict for California employees in 2005.  Thereafter, in 2006, Carolyn was appointed by a federal judge to serve as co-lead counsel in employment class actions pending against Wal-Mart in over thirty states across the nation.

In addition to her extensive class action and trial experience, Carolyn has successfully drafted and argued numerous appeals.  In May of 2008, Carolyn appeared before the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts where she successfully challenged three complex adverse rulings issued by the lower court judge that had served as the death knell of the class action against Wal-Mart.  The Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling in her clients’ favor on each ground.  Just a few months later, as co-lead counsel of a 30 state consolidated action Carolyn negotiated a $65-85 million settlement with Wal-Mart which was subsequented approved by the court.  In July 2009, Carolyn was appointed as lead counsel representing a class of 90,000 Wal-Mart employees in Massachusetts and subsequently succeeded in winning a $40 million settlement on their behalf.  

Josh Boxer

Since 2003, Joshua Boxer has represented plaintiffs in employment discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, disabilities, and whistleblower claims, winning over $40 million in verdicts and settlements.  Mr. Boxer served as co-counsel in Valladares v Madera Qualify Inn, whistle-blower case resulting in a jury verdict of over $25 million, one the top 100 Verdicts of 2006.  Josh also served as lead trial counsel in Vendenberg v Santa Clara County Fire Department, successfully vindicating the rights of the Department's first female Fire Captain and winning over $400,000.  As a result of his jury trial successes, Josh was named a 2010 Rising Star by Super Lawyer Magazine.   

Mr. Boxer is admitted to practice in all courts in the State of California, the United States District Courts for the Northern, Central, and Eastern Districts of California, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal.  Josh is an active member of the California Employment Lawyers Association.

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