Thrill of the spill

Sarasota personal injury attorney Bill Robertson has won dozens of cases and millions of dollars for clients over a 30-year legal career.

But few cases in his past prepared him for one of his ultimate legal challenges: assisting companies and municipalities with recouping money from lost business connected to the April 2010 BP oil spill. The case required persistence mixed with patience, and a keen understanding of the intricate process set up by the administrators of the $20 billion post-spill trust fund.

Robertson and his firm, Kirk-Pinkerton, reviewed 500 potential claims from individuals, businesses and local governments, many in the Sarasota-Bradenton region, others spread from the Panhandle to the Keys. The list included hotels, real estate firms and even an international law practice, Sarasota-based Jaensch Immigration, which relies mostly on foreign tourists, from Europe and Canada, for its business.