William E. Robinson

Partner

William E. “Rick” Robinson is a partner in the Litigation, Business Services, and Labor & Employment practice groups of Best Best & Krieger LLP. Mr. Robinson previously was a founding partner in the law firm of Johanson & Robinson in Sacramento. Mr. Robinson’s practice emphasizes commercial, real estate and creditor’s rights litigation, and labor and employment law.

Mr. Robinson has over 30 years of litigation experience, including jury and bench trials, commercial arbitrations, administrative hearings, and appellate court cases. He has served as counsel to the California Department of Insurance in proceedings before the state senate and represented media clients in numerous libel and constitutional matters.

Mr. Robinson is the co-author of A Constitutional Right of Access to Newspapers:  Is There Life After Tornillo?, published in the Santa Clara Law Review, and he has written numerous law firm newsletter articles on employment, real property, and insurance law topics. He has appeared as a legal affairs commentator on KCRA-TV and KQCA-TV.

Mr. Robinson has been a member of the Executive Committee of the UC Davis Heath System Leadership Council for ten years and serves on the Advisory Board of the UCDHS Center for Pain Medicine. He has been active in Sacramento area youth sports programs and was named “Pocket Little League volunteer of the year.”

Mr. Robinson has served as a Judge Pro Tem in Sacramento County Superior Court since 1991, an Evaluator for the U.S. District Court’s Early Neutral Evaluation Project since 1992, and an Arbitrator for the Sacramento County Bar Association Fee Arbitration Program since 1994. With the San Bernardino County District Attorney, he developed and implemented a jury trial training program for civil lawyers. 

Mr. Robinson received his undergraduate degree, cum laude, from Amherst College, where he was awarded the George Rogers Taylors Price in American Studies and was president of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. He earned his law degree,  cum laude, from the University of Santa Clara where he was articles editor of the  Santa Clara Law Review and vice president of the Student Bar Association.

Mr. Robinson belongs to the American Bar Association, State Bar of California, and Sacramento County Bar Association. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and the U.S. District Court for the Northern, Eastern, Central and Southern Districts of California. 

Education

• Santa Clara University, J.D. (1976)
• Amherst College, B.A.

Bar Admissions

• California (1976)