---
title: "Robert B. Rigney | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/robert-b-rigney-va-norfolk-circuit-court"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-07-26"
---

# Robert B. Rigney

Norfolk Circuit Court · Judge

## Profile

- Court: Norfolk Circuit Court
- State: Virginia
- Role: Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-26

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Before you appear

- Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.
- Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.
- Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

## Courtroom Rules

### cell phones and electronic devices

Scope: statewide

Virginia courts commonly restrict cell phones and other electronic devices in court buildings; counsel and litigants should check the local court policy before arrival.

Evidence excerpt: Most courts in Virginia do not allow you to bring a cell phone or other electronic device into the building.

[Cell Phone & Electronic Device Policy](https://selfhelp.vacourts.gov/node/30/cell-phone-electronic-device-policy)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.vacourts.gov/static/directories/judges_rule115.pdf)
- [Official roster](https://www.vacourts.gov/static/directories/judges_rule115.pdf)
- [Office of the Executive Secretary, Supreme Court of Virginia official judicial roster](https://www.vacourts.gov/static/directories/judges_rule115.pdf)
- [Cell Phone & Electronic Device Policy](https://selfhelp.vacourts.gov/node/30/cell-phone-electronic-device-policy)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- He also serves on the Norfolk Criminal Justice Board as Chief Judge for the 2nd Term (2025–2027)
- Before becoming Chief Judge, Rigney held the role of a judge on the 4th Judicial District Court of Virginia (Norfolk) from 2019.
- He then spent over 30 years as a partner at Protogyrou & Rigney, a Norfolk law firm he joined in 1987
- The Chief Judge of the 4th Judicial Circuit Court of Virginia, which covers the City of Norfolk

### Education

- University of Richmond School of Law — J.D. (1987)
- B.A., State University of New York at Oswego (1982)

### Additional information

- Appointment: Elected by the Virginia General Assembly in 2022 to fill a vacancy caused by the retirement of Hon. Joseph Migliozzi
- Earlier in his career, he was admitted to the Virginia Bar in 1987 and later to the bars of the District of Columbia (1990), New York (1996), and multiple U.S. federal courts.
- Rigney is a member of the Norfolk and Portsmouth Bar Associations, the Virginia State Bar, the District of Columbia Bar, and professional organizations including the Virginia Association on Defense Attorneys and the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.