Robert L. Wegman Bio
Robert L. Wegman, PLC, is a Chesapeake-based attorney serving the Virginia Beach, Norfolk, and Portsmouth, Virginia, areas.
Born on a military base in Ohio, Mr. Wegman grew up in a military family. His father retired from the Air Force. Consequently, Mr. Wegman lived on military bases surrounded by honorable men and women of the U.S. Military. Mr. Wegman attended Atlantic Christian College in 1979, and in 1981, he spent his summer training with the Marines in the Platoon Leaders Class Program at U.S. Marine Corps base Quantico, Virginia. He graduated from college in 1983.
After teaching for 5 years, Mr. Wegman decided to change course completely by applying for Coast Guard Officer Candidate School. After 4 months of training, Mr. Wegman was commissioned an Ensign and proudly served for almost 12 years. While serving many quasi-legal and operational roles during the aftermath of massive Exxon Valdez oil spill, he gained an interest in environmental law. He applied for the highly competitive and prestigious Legal Education Program, and was one of 4 selected to attend law school.
Mr. Wegman chose New York Law School in Manhattan where he was meritoriously selected to be an editor of the heralded Law Review. Upon graduating cum laude with his Juris Doctorate degree, he was transferred to MLC Atlantic and Atlantic Area commands in Norfolk and Portsmouth, respectively, where he served in the Legal Division as a Lieutenant Commander. While in the Coast Guard, Mr. Wegman was temporarily assigned to the Naval Legal Service Office, where he defended the rights of sailors and marines in countless Administrative Discharge Boards, Boards of Inquiry, and Courts-Martial, involving the most serious charges. He also spent 20 months as a Special Assistant United States Attorney in the Norfolk Division where he prosecuted felonies and misdemeanors.
Mr. Wegman resigned in 2000 to pursue private practice. He was hired as an environmental lawyer with the renowned law firm Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker on Park Avenue and 55th Street in Manhattan, There, he did a lot of environmental site assessment work and represented the Intrepid Sea Air Space Museum in asbestos litigation before the New York Department of Conservation. He also assisted with rewriting sections of the leading treatise on New York Environmental Law.
Following the tragedy of 9/11, Mr. Wegman volunteered to assist grieving families, particularly first responders with legal needs. The slow down in the real estate market in New York led Mr. Wegman to pursue other options where in 2003, he opened his own firm, specializing in traffic, criminal law, domestic law, estate planning, contracts, and civil litigation. In the last several years, Mr. Wegman has expanded his practice to include personal injury. In addition, Mr. Wegman does many other legal matters.
