Twenty-five years of litigation support. One principal, no overhead.

David A. Black began his career as a San Francisco public school teacher for four years before transitioning into litigation support at Cooley, Godward, Castro, Huddleson & Tatum (now Cooley LLP) and Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich (now DLA Piper). Over more than twenty-five years supporting trial lawyers and expert witnesses on complex matters, he developed the elite-firm managing paralegal skills that have defined ShadowCounsel's work for the past twenty-one years.

Over the last decade his focus has expanded across all types of civil litigation. Personal injury, employment disputes, contract matters, and complex liability cases where expert testimony plays a central role. He works directly with expert witnesses across multiple disciplines to build the record foundation their opinions rest on.

ShadowCounsel pairs traditional human rigor, discipline, creativity, and compassion with modern AI workflows. The result is faster turnaround and deeper record coverage, without sacrificing human review that keeps the work defensible.

Beyond his direct case work, Dave also helps trial lawyers across the country locate and vet qualified experts, consultants, and specialists in every field and practice area. Two decades of litigation practice have built a deep bench of trusted experts across jurisdictions and specialties.

Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Dave flies solo and takes cases nationwide.