He became a partner at Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering in 1973.[1] While in private practice, he served as president of the District of Columbia Bar (1991–1992),[1][2] and president of the Southern Africa Legal Services and Legal Education Project (1989–1994).[2]
Robertson was an early and prominent advocate of the need for an institutional adversary process within the FISA Court, to allow FISA judges to hear arguments from counsel other than the government's counsel.[11][12] In an oral history, Robertson said:
In the exercise of its quotidian warrant-issuing function, the FISA Court acts like a magistrate judge. Everything is ex parte, and there is no reason, no occasion, to have a defense lawyer there arguing that the warrant should not be issued. But when the FISA court is asked, as it was after the enactment of the Patriot Act, to approve not only individual warrants but also surveillance programs that would be carried on without a warrant, then the FISA Court was acting I thought like a court reviewing the work of an administrative agency. And when courts review the work of administrative agencies, they do it in an adversary context with somebody arguing the other side. I said to the PCLOB that a judge who hears one side of an argument may think that’s a pretty good argument until he hears the other side of the argument. Our system depends entirely on somebody pushing back and arguing the other side of any proposition. And I said that without that, courts are going to make mistakes.[12]
A compromise provision in the 2015 USA Freedom Act adopted a form of adversary process within the FISA Court, allowing the court's judges to call upon a panel of attorneys as amicus curiae to offer adversary views; Robertson viewed this reform as a sufficient process to satisfy adversaries.[12]
United States v. Hubbell: In 1998, Robertson dismissed the indictment of Webster L. Hubbell on tax evasion charges. Robertson held that independent counselKenneth W. Starr exceeded his authority by charging Hubbell, and criticized Starr for going on a "quintessential fishing expedition."[13]
American Council of the Blind v. Snow: In 2006, Robertson ruled in favor of the American Council of the Blind, holding that the U.S. Department of the Treasury's "failure to design and issue paper currency that is readily distinguishable to blind and visually impaired individuals violates section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act."[14] Robertson noted that "Of the more than 180 countries that issue paper currency, only the United States prints bills that are identical in size and color in all their denominations."[15][16] The decision was affirmed by the D.C. Circuit on appeal.[17][18]
Schroer v. Billington: In a suit brought by a transgender employee against the Library of Congress, Robertson ruled in 2006 that employment discrimination against transgender persons may violate Title VII's prohibition on discrimination "because of ... sex."[19] In 2008, following a trial, Robertson ruled that the employee's civil rights were violated.[20]
Retirement and death
After serving for 14 years, Robertson assumed senior status on the District Court on December 31, 2008; he fully retired on June 1, 2010.[3] After retiring from the bench, Robertson became a mediator and arbitrator with JAMS, deciding complex commercial cases.[21] He also wrote two op-eds published in the Washington Post.[22][23]