Steven Ragona started his career at Girardi & Keese in Los Angeles, a plaintiffs’ law firm specializing in mass tort cases, professional malpractice, insurance litigation and personal injury. He joined the Los Angeles office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in 1997, where he worked until 2003 before joining Valle Makoff.
Mr. Ragona’s practice focuses on complex commercial, insurance and business litigation matters and class action lawsuits. He also has litigation experience in matters involving securities law, intellectual property and constitutional law. Over the years, Mr. Ragona has been involved in matters such as:
- Defeating certification of a nationwide class action lawsuit brought against Farmers Insurance Company challenging their claims handling policies;
- Obtaining dismissal of a California class action lawsuit brought against State Farm Insurance Company challenging their procedures for payment of third party claims;
- Obtaining summary judgment for Bear Stearns in a misappropriation of trade secrets case arising out of a hostile tender offer;
- Representing Ohio Casualty Insurance Company in Proposition 103 rate rollback proceedings before the California Department of Insurance; and
- Successfully representing Cytec Industries, Inc. in a commercial dispute regarding the development and exploitation of composites technology.
Mr. Ragona earned his law degree in 1995 from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, graduating cum laude and order of the coif. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in English literature from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1989. Mr. Ragona is a member of the California and Los Angeles County bar associations.