Will Become Next City Attorney on Admission to Maryland Bar
The Rockville Mayor and Council appointed Virginia attorney Robert E. Dawson as the city’s corporate counsel at their Monday, June 19 meeting, a title he will hold until he is admitted to the Maryland Bar, when he will officially become Rockville’s new city attorney.
Dawson will assume the post on Monday, Aug. 23. As an experienced attorney, his admission to the bar is expected to take two to six months.
Cynthia Walters has served as Rockville’s acting city attorney over the past year. She will continue in that role until Dawson is admitted to the Maryland Court of Appeals.
Dawson, who has more than two decades’ experience in the legal field, most recently served as a senior assistant county attorney to Arlington County, Virginia.
For the past 17 years, Dawson has advised and counseled various government entities that include boards of supervisors, city councils, regional authorities and economic development authorities.
Dawson began his legal career as a corporate attorney for law firms in New York City and Silicon Valley. However, his passion for public service and desire to make a difference led him to the practice of local government law.
Dawson was raised by a single mother and is the first in his family to graduate from college. After initially attending a community college, Dawson received a Bachelor of Science from Tuskegee University, a Master of Public Administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, and a Juris Doctor from the University of California, Berkeley.