Bob focuses his practice on mass tort, product liability and complex commercial litigation. He frequently tries jury cases to verdict in state and federal courts around the country.
He recently tried a product liability wrongful death case to a defense verdict for a major automobile manufacturer. He was trial counsel in a multi-million dollar Lanham Act and defamation jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The case resulted in the largest verdict in Virginia for 2009. Less than a year earlier, he tried a multi-million dollar tort case to a defense verdict also in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Additionally, Bob tried a mold toxicity case to verdict in Fairfax County, Virginia. He was trial counsel in a case selected by the National Law Journal as one of the “Top Ten Defense Verdicts of 2002,” and has served as counsel in numerous other jury trials around the nation. Bob defends mass and class action defendants and has served as part of the national defense team for a consumer products retailer involved in formaldehyde-related class action litigation and a defendant in mass litigation involving tainted steroid injections. In addition, Bob maintains an active appellate practice. He has appeared as lead appellate counsel six times in the Supreme Court of Virginia and has argued in the Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Court of Appeals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He has filed amicus curiae briefs in the U.S. Supreme Court on matters related to patent interpretation
Bob also maintains an active pro bono practice. In 2005, Bob founded a pro bono clinic in conjunction with the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to serve the needs of Hispanic immigrants. The Virginia State Bar and the City of Richmond Bar Association have recognized Bob’s work with their highest pro bono awards.
Prior to entering private practice, Bob was a prosecutor for the U.S. Army in the 82d Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Virginia Law Fellows, 2017. Appointed by Virginia Law Foundation as one of fewer than 500 fellows in Virginia Bar distinguished by professional accomplishments and commitment to civic service.
Recipient, International Association of Defense Counsel, Joan Fullam Irick Award for Exceptional Leadership as Committee Chair, July 2014
Faculty, Mandatory Virginia State Bar Professionalism Course, 2012-present. Appointed by Supreme Court of Virginia
Recipient, Lewis F. Powell Jr. Award for Pro Bono Service, Virginia State Bar, 2012
Selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, Mass Tort Litigation, 2007-2019; Class Actions - Defendants, Product Liability Litigation, 2015-2019 Woodward/White, Inc.
Named "Humanitarian of the Year," Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, 2009
Recipient, John Kenny Pro Bono Award, Richmond Bar Association, 2008
Top 10 Defense Wins for 2002, National Law Journal
Named to "Leaders in the Law," Virginia Lawyers Weekly, 2006
Named to "Virginia Super Lawyers," Class Action/Mass Torts, Business Litigation, Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2007, 2014-2018
Named to "Legal Elite," Virginia Business, 2009
AV Preeminent Rated, Martindale-Hubbell
Chair, 2018 Mid-Year Meeting CLE Committee, International Association of Defense Counsel, July 2017 to March 2018
Past Chair, Social Justice and Pro Bono Committee, International Association of Defense Counsel, August 2015 to July 2017
Board of Directors, Richmond Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, August 2014 to present
Board of Directors, Sacred Heart Center, Richmond Virginia, January 2014 to present
Vice Chair, Board of Directors, Saint Anselm Society, Charlottesville Virginia, September 2009 to present
Past President, John Marshall American Inns of Court
Past Chair, International Association of Defense Counsel, Toxic and Hazardous Substances Committee.
Board of Directors, Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Member, Defense Research Institute
Member, Richmond Bar Association