Judge Eric Roberson didn’t know it at the time, but he began preparing for his seat on the 4th Judicial Circuit bench not long after he graduated from Oceanway Elementary School.
The next school year marked the beginning of the Duval County Public Schools magnet program, and he was accepted to James Weldon Johnson College Preparatory Middle School.
“That was one of the biggest breaks I’ve caught in life,” said Roberson, 37, who was appointed to the circuit bench by Gov. Rick Scott on June 5 after serving for two years as a Duval County judge.
“There were a lot of smart people there and they played chess, so I consumed every chess book I could find,” he said.
Roberson developed a flair for the game and mastered “check” and “checkmate” to the point he was the Jacksonville high school champion in his final year at James Weldon Johnson and then all four years at Stanton College Preparatory School. In his senior year, Roberson won the Southeast United States Scholastic Chess Championship.
Duval County Judge Gary Flower was Roberson’s mentor when he was appointed to the county judiciary two years ago. Flower said the thought processes Roberson developed through chess translate to the bench.
“He’s all about attacking a challenge. He thinks analytically and strategically and he can be creative in sentencing,” Flower said.
“He’s a fast learner and he has the intellectual horsepower to do anything he wants to do,” Flower added.
After high school, Roberson enrolled at the University of North Florida, intending to study political science and possibly major in criminal psychology.
Raised with a strong work ethic, beginning at age 15 the future judge had jobs at grocery stores and fast-food restaurants. While studying at UNF, Roberson worked at America Online as a customer service representative and fraud investigator.
He said that experience later helped him interact from the bench with attorneys, defendants and litigants.
“When you talk to a lot of unhappy people, you learn to communicate,” Roberson said.
One day as he was leaving class after a midterm exam, one of his professors invited Roberson to observe a mock trial competition. That changed his career path.
“I realized ‘hey, I can do this.’ Once you get the bug for litigation, it’s hard to get that adrenaline anywhere else,” Roberson said.
On the way to graduating from UNF in 2001, Roberson was a member of the Golden Key National Honors Society and the Pi Sigma Alpha political science honors society.
Between college and law school, Roberson had the opportunity to return to Stanton to teach a class for advanced placement European history students. Taking up an unfamiliar subject made Roberson hit the books again.
“I was only about two weeks ahead of the students,” he said.
Roberson entered the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2002 and graduated three years later, 14th out of a class of 205, and was inducted into the Order of the Coif.
GrayRobinson managing shareholder Kenneth Jacobs remembers meeting Roberson soon after the law firm opened its Jacksonville office.
“He was our first law clerk,” said Jacobs. “We knew right away that he’s extremely intelligent. I was impressed.”
Another of Roberson’s traits that impressed him was the future judge’s interpersonal skill.
“He’s a great people-person, He gets along with politicians and CEOs and the average person on the street,” Jacobs said.
After Roberson was admitted to The Florida Bar in 2005, he was an assistant state attorney in the 4th Circuit until 2007, when he joined the McGuireWoods law firm as an associate.
In 2011, the joined the Jason Porter firm, where he practiced in civil and criminal litigation until he started his own firm in 2014, about a year before he was appointed to the Duval County Court.
Roberson gained some experience in circuit court when he volunteered to take over part of the docket when Circuit Judge Harvey Jay was appointed to the 1st District Court of Appeal, including a week-long personal injury trial.
“I was happy to chip in and do that. It was great experience,” Roberson said.
When Gov. Rick Scott notified him he was moving to circuit court, he also learned he’d be assigned to juvenile court to replace retired Circuit Judge Henry Davis.
“I hadn’t practiced in juvenile court, so I had about two weeks to learn a new area of law,” Roberson said.
The court has a 300-page manual for judges who preside in the juvenile division, so it was back to the books and calling on past experience for the circuit’s new presiding officer.
“You figure it out. It’s like when I learned to play chess or teach AP history,” Roberson said.
He also said he’s looking forward to meeting new challenges and growing in his career in public service.
“I’m very happy with the path God has chosen for me.”