Micha Star Liberty

Micha Star Liberty founded her Liberty Law Office, Inc. in 2005 primarily to represent individuals who have suffered serious injury or abuse, including sexual abuse. A further key objective is to promote systemic change in disability rights and civil rights law.

"I don't resolve my cases just for the money, though of course that's important to get my clients help. There is often more to do," she said.

So even though she won a multimillion-dollar settlement for an autistic boy who said he was sexually assaulted at Contra Costa County's De Anza High School, she persisted. She's currently taking an unresolved part of the matter--whether public schools can be sued under the Unruh Civil Rights Act--to the state Supreme Court. Brennon B. v. Superior Court (West Contra County Unified School District), S266254 (Ca. S. Ct., pet. for rev. filed Dec. 23, 2020).

The case is fully briefed and awaits an oral argument date.

In 2020, a 1st District Court of Appeal panel ruled that public schools do not constitute "business establishments" and so cannot be sued under the Unruh Act. That was the rationale a Superior Court judge used to dismiss one of the claims in her original case, Liberty said, and that was an error she wants to rectify for future cases by asking the high court to clarify the law.

"There's over a million special needs students in California, and it can't be that they don't get to bring a civil rights claim with the enhanced remedies the Unruh Act provides," she said.

In a different case, Liberty has sued on behalf of a mother who alleges her child was sexually assaulted by a doctor at a health center. The civil complaint alleges sexual harassment by the doctor, Dmitri De La Cruz. The mother says she took her daughter, then under five years old, for a physical exam as part of her preparation for attending kindergarten. The assault took place as part of the exam, the complaint asserts. K.A. v. Clinica Sierra Vista, 1:21-cv-01105 (E.D. Cal., filed July 20, 2021). The matter is currently being remanded to the Fresno County Superior Court.

"What's really disturbing so far in this case is that when we complained about the doctor to the state medical board, they said they didn't think the doctor's actions fell below the standard of care," Liberty said.

Beyond litigation, Liberty recently launched The Soaring Center, designed to aid trauma victims and their advocates through mediation services, independent investigations, referral to expert witnesses and testimony preparation.

She calls it a first-of-its-kind consultancy focused on helping sexual assault and harassment survivors "navigate the often tumultuous waters of justice and accountability."

"This supplies the piece you don't always get in litigation," she said. "It's my passion project."

- John Roemer