B. Douglas Robbins
drobbins@woodrobbins.com

Douglas Robbins specializes in litigating professional liability, real estate, employment law, and complex business disputes. He also provides counsel on the laws regulating media, art, advertising, and speech.

One of Mr. Robbins' strengths is in appellate practice. In the last few years, Mr. Robbins has prevailed in six out of seven matters before the California Court of Appeals--including the recent matter of Cal.-Nev. Annual Conference of United Methodist Church v. San Francisco, 173 Cal. App. 4th 1559 (2009).

Mr. Robbins has been named to the list of Super Lawyers Magazine's 2011 and 2012 Rising Stars.

Media Law Group

Mr. Robbins is the Chair of the the firm's Media Law Group, serving clients involved in producing, acquiring, licensing, and managing audio-visual media. Robbins helps content-creators and distributors through the intellectual-property landmines involved in protecting their art, producing films, developing games, and making music.

Mr. Robbins' clients include:

• Business managers for rock bands Green Day, Third-Eye Blind, Train, Death Cab for Cutie, and The Killers;
• Internet social-network for hot-rod enthusiasts, My Ride Is Me; and
• Independent film producer, Wonderbar Productions.

Publications

• The Fifth Element: The Unspoken Element in the Fair Use Four-Part Test, 14 Intell. Prop. L. Bull. 95 (2010);
• Why Fair Use Matters, New Matter, vol. 35, no. 2, 2010, at 24;
• Comment, Resurrection from a Death Sentence, 149 U. Pa. L. Rev. 1115 (2001);
• Aside, Challenging Law Review Dominance, 149 U. Pa. L. Rev. 1601 (2001).

Speaking Engagements

• Lecturer, California Lawyers for the Arts, "Great Artists Steal: How to Lawfully Copy Third-Party Media Into Your Work, May 2012, San Francisco (Fort Mason), California;
• Lecturer, California Lawyers for the Arts, "Copyright Basics," August 2011, San Francisco (Fort Mason), California;
• Lecturer, California Lawyers for the Arts, "Fair Use in Film and Television," July 2010, San Francisco (Fort Mason), California.

Pro Bono Work

Mr. Robbins is a member of the Board of Directors for Baykids, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping hospitalized children in the Bay Area through movie-making as-therapy. Mr. Robbins received the State Bar of California’s 2004 Wiley W. Manuel Award for Pro Bono Legal Services.

Education

• University of Pennsylvania Law School, J.D. 2001
  
  • Executive Ed. of the Univ. of Pennsylvania Law Review (2001)
  • Associate Ed. of the Univ. of Pennsylvania Law Review (2000)
  • Intern at the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union ("ACLU")
    

• University of California, Berkeley, A.B. in Philosophy, 1992
  • Member of the California Debate Team
  • Staff Writer for the California Review

• Cambridge University, United Kingdom, 1991 Summer Session