Ricky S.

Background

About Ricky S.

Ricky Steelman’s extensive business litigation experience includes successful representation of individuals, Fortune 500 companies, creditors, debtors, hospitals, and emergency physician groups in state and federal (including bankruptcy) courts, as well as arbitrations, throughout all phases of the litigation process. This includes pre-litigation investigation and demands, the filing of a complaint, law and motion practice (such as drafting and filing demurrers, motions to dismiss, and motions for summary judgment), conducting and responding to discovery (including depositions and subpoenas), attending mediations and settlement conferences, and representing clients at trial and evidentiary hearings.Mr. Steelman is also an experienced appellate attorney who has managed more than 80 appeals in the various appellate districts of the California Courts of Appeal, the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He also has substantial bankruptcy litigation experience in numerous bankruptcy matters, contested proceedings, and adversary proceedings. Specifically, he played a critical role in obtaining summary judgment (resulting in a published decision in favor of a Fortune 100 financial institution) where the bankruptcy court granted his plaintiff client’s request for substantive consolidation. That judgment forced seven non-debtor entities and three non-debtor individuals involved in a multi-million dollar mortgage-relief fraud scheme into the primary debtor-entity’s Chapter 7 bankruptcy and under the purview of the bankruptcy court. This resulted in better protections for vulnerable consumers and members of the community, as well as financial institutions and corporations.Mr. Steelman also has significant class action defense work in federal court and substantive experience handling California probate proceedings, including trial. He first chaired a probate trial where he successfully challenged the executor’s final accounting of a probate estate and the executor’s request for extraordinary fees in connection with that estate. That probate decision after a multiple-day trial resulted in greater financial distributions to Mr. Steelman’s client, as well as several other non-profit organizations across the country.Mr. Steelman is very proud to be a two-time Cooke Scholar after being selected for the 2002 Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Scholarship and the 2006 Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Graduate Scholarship – a rare and coveted accomplishment in today’s competitive world.