Profile
Judge Terrie L. Robinson was appointed by the Tribal Council as an Appellate Judge on the Wilton Rancheria Appellate Panel in 2023. Judge Robinson is the principal of the Law Office of Terrie L. Robinson, LLP, which represents tribes in tribal cultural resources protection matters. A fifth-generation Californian, she has been licensed to practice law in California for thirty-two years and retired from service with the State of California in 2021. During her sixteen years with the State of California, she served as the Legal Ethics and Accountability Attorney for the California State Teachers’ Retirement System; General Counsel for the California Native American Heritage Commission; Senior Board Counsel to the Chair of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board; and staff counsel to the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community College System and the California Earthquake Authority. Judge Robinson most recently served as the Directing Attorney of the Sacramento Office of California Indian Legal Services.
Education
Judge Robinson earned her Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School, where she served as an editor for the Harvard Law Review and the Harvard Women's Law Journal. She graduated with a Master of Public Affairs with a Concentration in Domestic Policy from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Stanford University.
Professional Memberships
Judge Robinson is admitted to practice law in California, the Unites States Supreme Court, and the United States District Courts for the Northern and Eastern District of California. She is a member of the California Lawyers Association. She is the Past President of the Charles Houston Bar Association and served as a Board Member of the Wiley Manuel Law Foundation from 1995 to 1998.
Career Highlights
Judge Robinson has led numerous Indian Law trainings for a variety of organizations and agencies including the California Indian Law Association, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Sacramento County Bar Association, California Preservation Foundation, California Environmental Protection Agency, and the American Planning Association. Additionally, she has authored multiple articles for the ABA Minority Trial Lawyer Magazine and California Law Business Magazine.
Judge Robinson received the Outstanding Editor Award from the American Bar Association Litigation Section in 2005, the Community Service Award from the Charles Houston Bar Association in 2000, the President’s Award from the Charles Houston Bar Association in 1996 and the National Bar Association in 1998. Additionally, she was inducted to the Hall of Fame for the Constance Harvey Slaughter Chapter of the Black Law Students Association at the University of Mississippi Law Center in 1999.