About Mr. Nicholas D.
Mr. Nicholas D. Zeltzer earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2005. He is licensed to practice in both California and Illinois. Early on he chose a path that combined courtroom work and firm practice. That mix has shaped a career that moves between trial dockets and office counsel work.
His first post-law-school position was at the Pima County Public Defender's Office in 2006. There he handled trial-level matters and gained early experience in criminal defense. In 2007 he joined Higgins & Higgins, where he continued to build courtroom experience. The next year he worked at Secrest & Wardle. By 2009 he had become a partner at Sverdlov & Zeltzer, a role he has held since.
Alongside those roles he has maintained ties to the bench and to legal education. In 2009 he served as a judicial intern at the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara, a connection that is listed as ongoing. He also took on a leadership role outside traditional practice when he became president of The Law Box in 2008, a position he continues to hold. His membership in the State Bar of California dates to 2009.
The arc of his résumé shows steady movement from public service into private practice. Time at the public defender's office meant early exposure to trial preparation, witness work and courtroom procedure. Stints at small firms followed, and then partnership. The result is a lawyer accustomed to the rhythms of litigation and to managing matters across different office settings.
At Sverdlov & Zeltzer he has worked from multiple offices, including the firm's presence in Los Altos and San Francisco and at the Hall of Justice. Those locations place him close to county courts and to municipal dockets. Colleagues and clients see him as a lawyer who brings courtroom experience to firm matters, and who understands how decisions made early in a case can affect what happens at trial.
Outside the courtroom he has continued involvement in professional organizations and in running The Law Box. That dual track—practice and organizational leadership—has been a throughline of his career since the late 2000s. He maintains an active practice handling litigation matters in state courts and represents clients across cases brought in California courts.
