Atty. Roberta B. Walburn
Roberta B. Walburn has focused her legal career on complex, high-stakes litigation.
Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs Attorney · Serving Minneapolis, MN
Profile Summary
About Roberta B. Walburn at a Glance
Roberta B. Walburn is a class action and product liability attorney based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, practicing at Ciresi Conlin LLP. Educated at University of Minnesota (—, 1983) and University of Michigan (—). Recognitions include Best Lawyers in America — Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs (2026), Best Lawyers in America — Additional Areas of Practice: (2026), and Best Lawyers in America — Mass Tort Litigation (2026). Serves clients in Minneapolis, MN and the surrounding metropolitan area.
Get Legal Help from Roberta B. Walburn in Minneapolis
Sign up free and choose one of the two methods below.
Have a legal question? Sign up free, submit it through the Ask the Attorney module and receive a focused answer from a specialist.
- Free to ask a question
- Answers from specialist attorneys
- Optional private / anonymous question
Request an online video meeting or an in-person consultation at the attorney's office. Pick a time that works for you and share the details securely.
- Online video meeting
- In-person at the attorney's office
- Secure messaging and payment
About Roberta B. Walburn
- Roberta B. Walburn has focused her legal career on complex, high-stakes litigation
- Most notably, she played a pivotal role in the Minnesota tobacco litigation, representing the State of Minnesota and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota in their groundbreaking lawsuit against the tobacco industry
- After four years of litigation—including unearthing more than 30 million pages of internal documents, litigation of crime-fraud issues, more than a dozen unsuccessful interlocutory appeals by the tobacco industry (including two to the U.S
- Supreme Court), and four months of trial—the case settled on the eve of jury deliberations
- The settlement provides for more than $6.6 billion in payments to the State and Blue Cross and unprecedented injunctive relief
- For her work on the tobacco litigation, Ms. Walburn, along with Mike Ciresi, received the Trial Lawyer of the Year Award from Trial Lawyers for Public Justice
- Ms. Walburn also played significant roles in other major cases including: the Bhopal gas leak disaster litigation (representing the Union of India and, through the government, all victims of the Bhopal disaster in litigation against Union Carbide Corporation)
- the Copper-7 IUD litigation (representing women injured by the Copper-7 intrauterine device)
- the Honeywell autofocus camera litigation (representing Honeywell Inc. in a series of patent infringement cases against camera manufacturers from Japan and the United States)
- the Eveleth plane crash (representing the families of U.S
- Senator Paul and Sheila Wellstone and the four staff members killed in a charter plane crash in northern Minnesota)
- She also helped to represent Alan Page in his successful constitutional challenge to vacate a governor’s executive order extending the term of an incumbent justice (which cleared the path for Alan Page’s successful election to the Minnesota Supreme Court)
- Among other honors, Ms. Walburn is also listed in “Minnesota’s Legal Hall of Fame: The 100 Most Influential Attorneys in State History” and has been commemorated by the University of Minnesota Law School as an alumni who made a difference by “shaping the legal landscape for the benefit of society.” Previously, Ms. Walburn worked as a reporter on the Minneapolis Star-Tribune and the Buffalo (N.Y.) Evening News, as a legislative assistant to U.S
- Senator Paul Wellstone, and as a senior fellow at the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland
- She also served as a law clerk to former U.S
- District Court Chief Judge Miles W. Lord and has authored the book, “Miles Lord: The Maverick Judge Who Brought Corporate America to Justice.” Ms. Walburn is a cum laude graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School, where she served on the law review, and received her undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Michigan
- She is a trustee of the Ciresi Walburn Foundation for Children
- Learn more at: https://www.ciresiwalburnfoundation.org
Practice Areas Explained
Roberta B. Walburn's Areas of Legal Practice
Each practice area below reflects the types of cases Roberta B. Walburn handles, with a practical overview of what that area of law involves and how it may apply to your situation in Minneapolis.
Class Action in Minneapolis
Roberta B. Walburn is one of 26,226 class action attorneys indexed nationally. Browse class action attorneys in Minnesota →
Product Liability in Minneapolis
Roberta B. Walburn is one of 65,610 product liability attorneys indexed nationally. Browse product liability attorneys in Minnesota →
Jurisdictional Context
Why Local Counsel Matters in Minneapolis
Practicing law in Minnesota. Legal matters in Minnesota are governed by state-specific rules of civil and criminal procedure, statutes of limitations, and substantive law. Cases originating in Minneapolis are typically filed in the local municipal court or the appropriate Minnesota state district court, depending on subject matter and amount in controversy. An attorney licensed in Minnesota brings working knowledge of local procedural deadlines, judicial practices in this venue, and the substantive law that applies to cases brought here. Out-of-state attorneys generally cannot represent clients in Minnesota courts without local counsel or pro hac vice admission.
Minneapolis Courts and Legal Process
Choosing a Minneapolis-based attorney means your counsel already knows the local docketing timelines, preferred filing formats, and how individual judges typically rule on procedural motions — details that only come from practicing in this jurisdiction day after day. That local familiarity can translate to better strategy, faster filings, and fewer costly surprises.
Looking for additional Minnesota attorneys? Browse all attorneys in Minneapolis or all attorneys in Minnesota.
Frequently Asked
Common Questions About Roberta B. Walburn
Where is Roberta B. Walburn's law office located?
What practice areas does Roberta B. Walburn handle?
Where did Roberta B. Walburn go to law school?
How can I contact Roberta B. Walburn for a consultation?
What awards or recognition has Roberta B. Walburn received?
Professional Profile
Why Clients in Minneapolis Choose Roberta B. Walburn
Selecting an attorney is one of the most consequential decisions you can make when a legal matter arises. Below are the core qualities that distinguish Roberta B. Walburn's practice in the field of class action and product liability.
Broad Practice Area Coverage
Covering class action and product liability, Roberta B. Walburn can address the full spectrum of a client's legal needs without requiring referrals to separate specialists for each issue.
Local Presence in Minneapolis
A Minneapolis-based practice means Roberta B. Walburn attends hearings in the same courthouses, knows the local clerks, and understands the unwritten scheduling norms that affect every case filed here.
Search Reference
How People Find Roberta B. Walburn Online
Prospective clients searching for legal help in Minneapolis commonly use a combination of the attorney's name and their specific legal need. The following search terms frequently lead people to this profile and to attorneys like Roberta B. Walburn.
If any of the above matches what you searched for, you've found the right profile. Use the contact options at the top of this page to get in touch with Roberta B. Walburn directly.
Roberta B. Walburn's Practice Areas & Specializations
Education & Law School Background
Awards & Professional Honors
Client Reviews & Ratings — Roberta B. Walburn
No reviews yet.