Robert Binder is a retired trial lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP. He handled complex litigation throughout the United States for 31 years. Robert was the founder of the former Product Liability Practice Group at Foley. His focus areas also included the construction and appellate practice. He is listed in the 2008 and 2009 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® in two categories: commercial litigation and alternative dispute resolution. He was Peer Review Rated as AV® Preeminent™, the highest performance rating in Martindale-Hubbell’s peer review rating system.
Robert received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1973, graduating first in his class, and his J.D. degree from the same school in 1975. He was a member of the Wisconsin Law Review and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and the Order of the Coif.
Representative Experience
- Defending a Fortune 500 engine manufacturer against a claim for $30 million in damages due to defective design in which a zero liability award was made after an extensive arbitration in Chicago
- Handling a multi-million dollar biomedical licensing dispute including winning two jury trials in federal court in Madison
- The successful representation of a Finnish-owned stone processing equipment manufacturer during a six-month arbitration in Philadelphia, in which a claim for $35 million in damages for alleged construction defects in a high-tech processing plant was defeated in its entirety
- The successful defense of the American subsidiary of a European manufacturer of hydro-turbines and paper making equipment in eight separate warranty cases in Greenville, S.C. (summary judgment), Atlanta (jury trial), Pittsburgh (three-week arbitration), Seattle (five-week arbitration), West Palm Beach (summary judgment), Chicago (summary judgment), Milwaukee (two week arbitration) and Mankato, Minnesota (summary judgment), each alleging multi-million dollar warranty or delay damages. (Mr. Binder has also represented the same client in numerous major cases which have settled, including cases in Taiwan, Canada, Wenatchee, Washington, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere.)
- The successful defense of a major vehicle manufacturer against a consumer class action brought by the leading U.S. plaintiffs’ class action firm
- A four-week bid protest trial in Eastern Washington as a result of which his German client was awarded a $50 million utility construction project
- Successful representation of a major league sports team seeking to recover lost revenues due to a construction accident
- The successful representation of a Swedish/Finnish paper machinery manufacturer in protracted litigation with an American joint venturer over rights to key technology (in which his client prevailed in two trials and a decisive appeal to the Seventh Circuit)
- The successful prosecution of a multimillion dollar claim against the United States government for a Hong Kong client in federal court in Phoenix, Arizona, which included a successful appeal to the Ninth Circuit and a three-week trial
- Representation of a German tunneling machine manufacturer in a four-week arbitration in Seattle
- The successful prosecution of a shareholder lawsuit on behalf of Australian and Swiss clients involving fraud and RICO allegations, including a successful appeal to the Seventh Circuit, which resulted in a multi-million dollar settlement for his client
- The successful prosecution of a Robinson-Patman price discrimination claim in a jury trial in rural Wisconsin
- The successful defense of a leading pharmaceutical manufacturer in a class action brought by thousands of Wisconsin residents with implanted heart valves