Jim Robinson

$131 million judgment for international client following jury trial
Jim led the White & Case team that secured a trial victory on behalf of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.  This case involved allegations of corruption and bid-rigging in connection with construction of the Piarco International Airport.  Our firm was hired for this matter following 18 years of litigation, and our team took the case to trial only 10 months after we were retained.  Following a three-and-a-half-week trial, the jury returned a verdict for our client.  Final judgment was thereafter entered in favor of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago for $131 million.

Trial court victory for international law firm
Jim led the White & Case team that secured a total victory on behalf of an international law firm.  The lawsuit was brought by the estate of a purported former client of the firm, and alleged claims against the firm for legal malpractice and vicarious liability.  This plaintiff sought over ten million dollars of damages against the firm.  After multiple amended complaints and motions to dismiss, and with all discovery stayed in the meantime, our team ultimately convinced the trial court to dismiss the final amended complaint with prejudice.

Trial court victory for national law firm
Jim led the White & Case team that secured a complete victory on behalf of a national law firm.  The lawsuit was brought by a former client of the law firm, who was not satisfied with the results of an underlying lawsuit that involved a lengthy and hotly-contested partnership dispute.  The client sought from her former attorneys tens of millions of dollars of damages stemming from the underlying trial.  Following the completion of discovery and extensive briefing and oral argument, we obtained final summary judgment in favor of our law firm client on all claims.

Dismissal of lawsuit against international clients
Jim led the White & Case team that represented overseas clients in a lawsuit filed in the U.S. arising from an alleged Ponzi scheme.  In that case, the Plaintiffs alleged a multi-faceted international scheme that allegedly deprived international investors of over US$300 million.  Our clients were alleged to have assisted the U.S.-based “principal defendants” in perpetuating the scheme over many years.  Following dismissal of two prior versions of the complaint, we obtained an order dismissing the case against our clients, with prejudice, for lack of personal jurisdiction.

Trial court victory for national law firm
Jim led the White & Case team that secured a complete victory on behalf of a national law firm that was sued in Miami-Dade County. The lawsuit was brought by a successor trustee, who was the opposing party in an underlying probate lawsuit. Under claims for conspiracy and fraudulent transfers, among others, the successor trustee sued a series of law firms and other professionals for disgorgement of fees earned over a multi-year period. While all of the other firms settled, our client wanted to take the case to trial. A few weeks before trial, the trial judge granted final summary judgment in favor of our client on all claims.

Order compelling arbitration for international client
Jim led the White & Case team that represented an overseas hedge fund in an international dispute with a US investor. The plaintiff, the US investor, filed suit in US District Court and sought damages in excess of US$18 million. But the plaintiff had agreed to arbitrate any disputes relating to his investment in a written agreement with our client. In court, the plaintiff sought to avoid arbitration by recasting his investment and arguing that the governing agreement was "null and void" due to fraud. The plaintiff also argued that he was not personally a party to the agreement and therefore could not be forced to arbitrate. Our team successfully argued that, under the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, the Court still must compel arbitration because the plaintiff’s fraud and duress defenses were issues for the arbitrator to decide. We also successfully argued that arbitration is appropriate against non-signatories under principles of equitable estoppel. The federal court granted the motion to compel arbitration and stayed all proceedings pending finalization of arbitral proceedings in Israel.

Bankruptcy court victory for banking client
Jim led the White & Case team that represented a banking client in its capacity as a secured creditor of a Florida-based corporation. Following entry of attorney's fees judgments in other courts in favor of the bank as prevailing party —and presumably to avoid paying those judgments—the corporation filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The bank moved to dismiss the chapter 11 case as a "bad faith" bankruptcy filing. Following several months of litigation in the bankruptcy court and multiple hearings, including an extensive evidentiary hearing, the bankruptcy judge dismissed the chapter 11 filing as a bad faith bankruptcy filing, with prejudice for one year.

Order compelling arbitration for international client
Jim was a member of the White & Case team that represented Seoul-based Hyundai Motor Company in an international dispute with Key Motors, Ltd., a distributor of Hyundai vehicles in Jamaica. Key Motors filed a lawsuit in Florida state court claiming, among other things, that Hyundai breached a purported oral agreement commencing in 1999 that allegedly gave Key Motors exclusive rights to distribute Hyundai commercial vehicles in Jamaica. Our team successfully removed the action to Florida federal court under the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards and its implementing US legislation. They then moved immediately to compel Key Motors to arbitrate the dispute in Seoul, Korea, based on an arbitration provision in a written distributorship agreement that Key Motors and Hyundai entered into in January 2013. The federal court granted Hyundai's motion to compel arbitration and stayed all proceedings pending finalization of the arbitral proceedings in Korea.

Trial court victory for credit card processor
Jim led the White & Case team that obtained summary judgment in favor of our client, an international fintech company that focuses on credit card and payment processing, in a dispute with one of its merchants stemming from improper credit card chargebacks totaling millions of dollars.

Successful resolution of international arbitration proceedings for credit card processor
Jim was a member of the White & Case team that assisted in resolving a dispute involving our client, an international fintech company that focuses on credit card and payment processing, in international arbitration proceedings. The dispute related to enforcement of a software products licensing agreement that covered sales territories in the Middle East and Africa.