William J. Dinkin, Criminal Defense Attorney in Richmond, Virginia

Bill Dinkin has been practicing law since 1990 and has concentrated his practice in the area of criminal law and civil litigation. His peers have regularly voted him among the Legal Elite for criminal lawyers in Virginia Business magazine and he has also been recognized for many years as a Virginia Super Lawyer in the area of criminal defense and white collar law. Mr. Dinkin is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, an elite organization of the country’s leading trial lawyers.

Mr. Dinkin represents clients charged with all types of felonies and misdemeanors in state and federal court and is particularly known for his expertise in federal white collar representation. In federal court he has recently defended clients in federal jury and bench trials against charges such as wire, mail and bank frauds, Medicaid fraud, environmental crimes, theft of trade secrets, money laundering, monetary structuring, drug conspiracies and narcotics distribution. He also has extensive experience handling white collar crimes at the state level, such as embezzlement, state securities fraud, and tax fraud. Mr. Dinkin counsels businesses during both internal investigations and when they are the target of grand jury investigations. He also handles traffic, DUI, underage possession of alcohol, possession of marijuana and other misdemeanor cases in state court and appeals at all levels, state and federal. Prior to practicing under the firm of William J. Dinkin, PLC, he was a member of Stone, Dinkin & Amirshahi, PLC, Additionally, Mr. Dinkin co-founded the firm of Dinkin & Purnell, PLLC. He also served for almost nine years in the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office for the City of Richmond, rising to the supervisory post of Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney. In that role, he was in charge of white collar prosecutions and also supervised and prosecuted hundreds of cases of narcotics crimes, violent crimes and asset forfeiture. His extensive trial experience as a prosecutor and defense attorney includes hundreds of bench trials and well over 50 jury trials, including capital murder, complex drug and financial crimes and the prosecution and defense of public officials for corruption and theft. In the civil arena, Mr. Dinkin often works with associated counsel representing plaintiffs in personal injury cases.

Mr. Dinkin teaches advanced trial advocacy and ethics in criminal litigation as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Richmond and is a frequent lecturer on criminal law at legal seminars. He has also published legal articles in journals such as the University of Richmond Law Review and the Virginia Bar Association Journal.

Bill Dinkin graduated from the University of Richmond Law School, where he was a member of the McNeil Law Society (top 10% of class). He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia. Mr. Dinkin is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Richmond Bar Association and the American Bar Association.

Published Works

• Hayes & Dinkin, “Environmental Liability in Real Property Transactions, 23 U. Rich. L. Rev. 349., 1989

• William J. Dinkin & Cullen D. Seltzer, Survey of Virginia Criminal Law, 35 U. Rich. L. Rev. 537, 2001

Classes/Seminars

• Adjunct Professor of Law, University of Richmond, 2000 – Present

Honors and Awards

• Virginia Legal Elite – Criminal Defense, 2003 – 2009, 2011, 2013-Present

• Virginia Superlawyers – White Collar Criminal Defense, 2006 – Present

• Best Lawyers in America – Criminal Defense: White Collar, 2016 – Present

Past Employment Positions

• Dinkin & Purnell, PLLC, Partner, 2002 – 2010

• City of Richmond Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney, 1994 – 2002

Professional Associations and Memberships

• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Member, 2002 – Present

• City of Richmond Bar Association, Member, 2002 – Present