Robert W. Kelley, Esq.

“I love making a difference in people's lives --helping them get the justice they seek on an individual basis."

For 25 years, Bob Kelley has been representing families and consumers whose lives have been devastated by reckless drivers, dangerous products and careless doctors, and hospitals. When tragedy needlessly strikes--because of the irresponsible behavior of an insurance company, corporation or medical conglomerate--Kelley is an advocate for the people, always representing David in the fight against Goliath. His strong convictions have led to appearances on CBS’ 60 Minutes and other news programs throughout the country.

Bob obtained national recognition as lead counsel for the McGee family in their fight against General Motors (GM) Corporation during a five-year, $91 million liability lawsuit, the largest personal injury/wrongful death judgment ever paid by the automaker. The climax of the six-month trial (the longest in GM’s history), occurred when GM was forced to disgorge long-hidden documents which indicated GM engineers had decided against installing gas tank shields, safety devices that would have prevented a number of fuel-fed fires--including the one that fatally burned 13-year-old Shane McGee and seriously injured three members of his family--because of an additional cost of only $2.20 per car. The revelation came after years of pursuit of these internal GM memos by Kelley and other members of his legal team. The successful verdict confirmed Kelley’s extensive legal ability and solidified his reputation as one of the finest trial attorneys in the country.

He has tried more than 100 jury trials across the United States, ranging in length from several days to over six months, and is an “AV” rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell.

He has published articles in the Florida Bar Journal, the Nova Law Review, the Journal of the American Association for Justice and the International Information Bulletin on Variable Stars. Bob has lectured at seminars and meetings on trial practice for the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers (AFTL), the Broward County Trial Lawyers Association, Nova Southeastern University and the Attorneys Information Exchange Group (AIEG).

He is actively involved with numerous charities and civic organizations in the South Florida area, and has served on the board of the Broward County United Way and the Broward County YMCA.


Education:

  • J.D, Cum Laude, Nova University
    • Served as Editor-in-Chief of the Nova Law Review and as an Editor of the law school newspaper
  • B.S., Physics and Astronomy, Vanderbilt University

Areas of Practice:

  • Catastrophic Injury
  • Defective Products
  • Medical Malpractice
  • Automobile Accidents
  • Consumer Fraud
  • Business Litigation
  • Wrongful Death

Bar Admissions:

  • Florida
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. District Court
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit

Awards and Honors:

  • Martindale Hubbell - AV Rating
  • Florida Super Lawyer - Top 5% of Attorneys in Florida 

Published Works:

  • "Hearsay Today-Gone Tomorrow - The changing Florida Evidence Code," Florida Bar Journal.
  • "Trial of A Treasure Hunter," Nova Law Journal

Professional Associations and Leadership Activities

  • Member - American Association for Justice
  • Member - Broward County Bar Association
  • Member & Former President - Broward County Trial Lawyers Association
  • Member & Former Board Member - Florida Justice Association
  • Member - The Florida Bar
  • Licensed Captain - United States Coast Guard
  • Former Member, Code & Rules of Evidence Committee, Florida Bar

Community Associations and Leadership Activities:

  • Former Board of Directors - Broward County United Way
  • Former Board of Directors - Broward County YMCA