Overview
Robyn Bacon is an experienced trial lawyer and former federal prosecutor who focuses her practice on trials, complex, high-stakes commercial and criminal litigation, and investigations. She has tried over a dozen civil and criminal trials in multiple jurisdictions, and argued over a dozen appeals before the Ninth Circuit and the California Court of Appeal.
Clients turn to Robyn to answer challenging questions of trial strategy and to navigate government and internal investigations in a range of areas, including cyber breaches, fraud, executive misconduct and whistleblower complaints.
A lifelong storyteller who started her professional life as a filmmaker, Robyn served as a federal prosecutor for over eight years and led or supervised over 100 criminal investigations, involving cybercrimes, financial frauds, criminal tax violations and money laundering, as well as drug trafficking, firearms and violent crimes.
Robyn teaches trial advocacy at Harvard Law School and has taught evidence at the USC Gould School of Law. She has also trained and mentored a multitude of young lawyers on trial techniques, witness interview skills and ethics.
Experience
Complex Commercial Litigation and Trials
Plains All-American Pipeline in a jury trial brought by the trustee in bankruptcy for Venoco, an offshore drilling company, following a pipeline failure and subsequent oil spill into the Pacific Ocean near Refugio State Beach in Goleta, California. The case settled after seven weeks of trial.
Real estate developer of multimillion-dollar Southern California development in securing a complete defense verdict in a breach of fiduciary duty bench trial.
Los Angeles Clippers in successfully settling litigation brought by Madison Square Garden, which opposed the development of the team’s new arena in Inglewood, California.
White Collar and Investigations
Board of Trustees of the Thacher School, one of the nation’s elite boarding schools, in an independent internal investigation of alleged sexual abuse at the school.
LLNS in securing dismissal of False Claims Act action brought by a former design physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Assistant United States Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, 2011-2019
During her eight years as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, Robyn tried 11 federal criminal trials, argued multiple appeals before the Ninth Circuit and prosecuted criminal cases involving cybercrimes, financial frauds, criminal tax violations and money laundering, as well as drug trafficking, firearms and violent crimes.
Robyn was also a deputy chief in the General Crimes Section where, as head of Criminal Complaints, she oversaw the investigation and charging of hundreds of criminal cases.
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Robyn has taught trial advocacy at Harvard Law School and evidence at the USC Gould School of Law. She has also guest lectured on sentencing at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law and the University of California, Irvine School of Law.
