Jeffrey D. Robinson

Mr. Robinson works in areas where traditional law and litigation intersect with public policy and politics.  Clients have called on him to litigate complex commercial and civil rights matters, respond to governmental and congressional investigations, develop legislative strategies, and address media inquiries.  He has the expertise and experience of a litigator as well as those of a government affairs practitioner. An example of Mr. Robinson’s work at the intersection of law and politics is his work on behalf of Vice President Al Gore during the 2000 election Florida vote-count challenge where he served as both trial counsel and a media surrogate.  

Among other matters, Mr. Robinson played a leading role, with his partner Eric Lewis, in obtaining a $1 billion judgment on behalf of the liquidators of a failed United Kingdom based bank in a RICO action against a bank front man. (BCCI Holdings (Luxembourg), S.A. v. Abdul Raouf Hasan Khalil.) He has been active in litigation and other matters involving the District of Columbia government, achieving a favorable settlement for a national health care services provider in the then largest health care fraud investigation conducted by the District of Columbia Inspector General and representing senior District of Columbia officials in various investigations.  An experienced civil rights litigator, Mr. Robinson was lead counsel in the case establishing that racially targeted predatory lending is a violation of the Fair Housing Act.

In non-litigation matters, Mr. Robinson counsels lawyers and law firms, as well as other professionals and their firms, on sensitive governance, professional employment, and ethical issues.  He played a major role in the firm’s successful state and federal legislative effort on asbestos litigation reform and has represented numerous individuals in responding to inquiries from congressional investigating committees. He serves as General Counsel to the firm.

Mr. Robinson returned to the firm following five years’ service as Associate Director-Counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund (LDF).  While at LDF, he continued his work at the intersection of law and policy, including helping lead the successful effort to reform California’s Three Strikes law through a ballot initiative and playing important roles in multiple legislative efforts including the inclusion of civil rights protections in the Affordable Care Act and advancing criminal justice reform measures before the Senate and House Judiciary Committees. 

His public service and pro bono work at the firm includes representing the charities Reprieve and Reprieve US in their death penalty and international human rights work and having served as a consultant to the Conviction Integrity Unit of the District of Columbia U.S. Attorney’s Office – the unit charged with reviewing innocence claims brought by previously convicted individuals. Mr. Robinson has also been active with the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, including having previously served as Co-Chair and participating in litigation and advocacy to protect funding for public schools.

• Associate Director Counsel for Programs and Administration, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.
• Deputy Assistant Attorney General, United States Department of Justice
• Principal Deputy Corporation Counsel for the District of Columbia
• Minority Chief Counsel, United States Senate Constitution Subcommittee
• Adjunct Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center

• BCCI Holdings (SA) v. Khalil
• Hargraves, et. al. v. Capital City Mortgage Corp
• Bush v. Gore
• Represented a major health care provider in an investigation by the District of Columbia Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit into alleged over-billing for services
• Represented a national service provider in an investigation by the District of Columbia U.S. Attorney’s Office and District of Columbia Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in an investigation regarding claims processing
• Provided testimony on behalf of major international company and represented the company in congressional negotiations concerning asbestos reform legislation