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NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Jan. 27, 2026 – During the 2026 Orange County Bar Association Judges’ Night and Annual Meeting, members of the bench and bar honored Mark P. Robinson, Jr. (Ret.) as its Franklin G. West Award recipient and installed this year’s OCBA President Shirin Forootan. This annual event honors the sitting judges of Orange County and was held on Jan. 22, 2026, at the Irvine Marriott.
The Franklin G. West Award, the highest honor awarded by the OCBA, was first established in 1971 in honor of the late Judge Franklin G. West. On Jan. 22, Mark Robinson, Jr., joined an outstanding group of attorneys and judges whose lifetime achievements advanced justice and the law.
Mark P. Robinson, Jr., is the founder, senior partner and sole shareholder of Robinson Calcagnie, Inc., based in Newport Beach, California. Mark earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford University and graduated cum laude from Loyola School of Law. He has established a prominent legal practice devoted to consumer safety and has worked on thousands of products liability cases, including the landmark Ford Pinto case, Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Company, where a jury in Orange County, California, awarded $128 million in compensatory and punitive damages. The verdict was recognized by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America as one of the ten most significant civil trials of the past millennium.
Additionally, the OCBA installed Shirin Forootan as the 2026 OCBA President, along with the OCBA Board of Directors and the OCBA Charitable Fund leadership.
Shirin Forootan is the Managing Attorney at Forootan Law Corp., and professional mediator and neutral who exclusively mediates employment law cases. Her distinguished career practicing law in Orange County spans over 17 years, and includes working at large, mid-size, and small firms, on both the plaintiff and defense sides.
OCBA Officers
OCBA Board of Directors
About the Orange County Bar Association Established in 1901, the Orange County Bar Association, with over 7,500 members, is one of the largest voluntary bars in California. The mission of the Orange County Bar Association is to enhance the system of justice, to support the lawyers who serve it, and to assist the community served by it.
About the Franklin G. West Award Established in 1971 in memory of the late Judge Franklin G. West, a highly respected jurist who served on the bench from January 1939 to March 1965, the West Award is bestowed upon an outstanding attorney or judge who has made significant contributions to advance and elevate justice and law. Judge West’s 26 years and two months on the bench constituted the longest term ever served by a judge in California.
Media Contact: Erick Palacios (949) 440-6700, ext. 123 epalacios@ocbar.org
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