About Jerry Bien-Willner

Mayor Jerry Bien-Willner is an accomplished and proven advocate, collaborative problem solver, and professional and civic leader with a record of high achievement – and, foremost, a dedicated family man.

Jerry was born in Phoenix in 1974.  With his parents and two older sisters, Jerry moved to Paradise Valley when he was three, after which he attended Scottsdale public schools through high school.  Jerry’s parents founded a furniture manufacturing business in the 1970s, which would grow to become the largest furniture manufacturer in the region.  As a result, Jerry grew up working in business, and was fortunate to learn first-hand –from manufacturing, to sales, to management, to loading trucks! – as he worked throughout his school years on weekends and school breaks.  He did get away from work one summer, between his junior and senior years of high school, when he earned an opportunity to take college courses at Harvard – studying advanced calculus and philosophy.

Jerry attended Claremont McKenna College – a top-ten ranked small college – on a four-year academic merit scholarship (a “McKenna Scholar”).  He graduated, with honors, in 1997 with dual majors in Government and Literature.  Upon graduation, he earned the distinction of being recognized by faculty as the outstanding Literature graduate in his class.  Jerry also captained the five-college debate team (Pomona, Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, Harvey Mudd, & Scripps), and was selected to participate in and won many national and international debate tournaments.  Among other achievements, Jerry was the first person from outside the U.K. ever to reach the semi-finals of the Cambridge University debate tournament.  As in high school, Jerry worked throughout college, including as a researcher at the Henry Salvatori Center and the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.

After graduating from college, Jerry worked in sales and technology, before accepting an academic merit scholarship to attend the University of Arizona College of Law.  During the period in which he attended law school, Jerry worked as a research assistant in the field of corporate law, for the U.S. Department of Justice (for which he had to obtain full FBI background clearance), and in technology, helping to get a start-up company off the ground that would merge with Google before Google’s IPO. Jerry earned his law degree in 2002.  Among other honors, he won the Feglty Moot Court competition, and was the top-ranked member of the Moot Court Board.

Upon graduation from law school, Jerry set his sights on practicing litigation at the highest level.  He accepted a position at Bernstein Litowitz Berger and Grossmann LLP, a boutique firm specializing in complex litigation, repeatedly recognized as the top firm in the nation in this practice area.  Jerry initially practiced law in the firm’s San Diego office, until senior leadership brought Jerry to the firm’s New York City headquarters.  During his time at Bernstein Litowitz, Jerry’s work was key to winning over $1 billion in recoveries for his clients.  Among other key matters, Jerry served as deputy lead administrative counsel in the mutual funds “market timing”/ “late trading” litigation (MDL-1586), a massive collection of cases centralized in the federal courts of Maryland – in which he served as a strategic quarterback for all plaintiffs’ firms to litigate and ultimately settle with landmark results, while “making new law” in this field.  Among other notable cases, he also served as a lead lawyer in the Washington Mutual Securities Litigation, which became the primary case study for the United States Senate’s “post mortem” analysis of the mortgage lending crisis.    

Jerry met his wife and soulmate, Robyn, while they both lived in New York City – she was working in fashion merchandising for Coach, Inc. (yes, the handbag company!).  They decided to move to Arizona to start their family together.  Jerry currently is active as an investor and entrepreneur, in addition to maintaining his credentials as an attorney licensed in Arizona and California (he had been affiliated as “of counsel” with a national firm with offices in Arizona, until his commitments as Mayor made litigation practice at a larger firm impractical).

Jerry’s volunteer public service began in 2012, when he was appointed to serve on the Town of Paradise Valley Planning Commission.  In 2014, he was elected to the Town Council.   In 2017 and 2018, Jerry was chosen by the Council to serve two consecutive terms as the Town's Vice Mayor.  Jerry was first elected Mayor of Paradise Valley in 2018, and was re-elected in 2020.  

Throughout his public service, Jerry has been recognized for finding win-win solutions for our community in a collaborative and constructive way, while honoring and protecting the Town’s character and traditions.  As such, he has taken a leading role in the consideration and successful resolution of several key issues for the Town, including with respect to protecting the Town’s quiet residential character, and the Town’s public safety, finances, planning and development matters, infrastructure, and services.  As Mayor, Jerry’s primary focus is to continue to protect the unrivaled and unique low-density residential character, exceptional quality of life, and high level of safety of Paradise Valley.

Jerry is a proud and happy resident of Paradise Valley together Robyn and their two wonderful children – both of whom attend Cherokee Elementary School.  Jerry loves spending time with his family.  Among his hobbies, he enjoys playing guitar (and dabbles on the drums) – you can also find him on Tuesdays on the basketball court with his two-time league champion over-45 men’s basketball team.  Jerry is highly proficient in Spanish, and also has a working knowledge of Hebrew and Latin.  

Jerry is extremely honored to serve as your Mayor and welcomes your contact, including any questions, feedback, or ideas you may have.