Jerry Dagrella has operated at the apex of high-stakes commercial litigation for 23 years, amassing a distinguished record marked by over $300 million in verdicts, judgments, and successfully defeated claims. With a battle-tested presence in over 100 trials, arbitrations, and mediations, Mr. Dagrella has cultivated a reputation as a tenacious, strategically astute, and exceptionally effective advocate. He has cross-examined officers of billion-dollar companies, gone toe-to-toe with some of the most highly-regarded law firms in the nation and defeated trial lawyers from such top schools as Harvard, Stanford and Yale. His commanding victories include:

• Secured a complete defense judgment in high-profile case following a 17-day trial, which was affirmed on appeal (Court of Appeal Opinion), and resulted in total vindication and victory for client in dispute over $10 million estate. (See: News)
• Outmaneuvered and defeated a powerhouse legal team of six attorneys from a top national firm, winning a complete defense verdict in a complex $40 million contract dispute where the odds were heavily stacked against his client.
• Secured a stunning $7.89 million fraud judgment—an amount 52 times the opposing party’s meager $150,000 pre-trial offer—after dismantling the developer’s defense during an intense three-week trial.
• Masterfully dismantled multiple antitrust suits levied against 29 real estate developers, strategically turning the tables on plaintiffs despite their 1,000+ pages of opposition briefing; prevailed at both trial and appellate levels through superior legal strategy.
• Consistently shut down frivolous lawsuits through aggressive deployment of C.C.P. § 128.7, not only winning dismissals with sanctions but pursuing disciplinary charges against attorneys who dare abuse the legal system. (See: Articles)

(See Court Victories for a more extensive list of impressive verdicts, dismissals and settlements.)

Mr. Dagrella was born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in a military family in Salinas, California—a rough neighborhood where drugs and crime were so prevalent that media dubbed it the “youth murder capital of California.” (See VICE News.) The experience made him tough, aggressive and uncommonly successful. With hard work, grit and determination, he worked three jobs and grinded his way through college and grad school in record time. He attended CSU—Monterey Bay (former Fort Ord military base) on an academic scholarship and Golden Gate University’s Graduate School of Taxation. By age 19, he was accepted into the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. He received numerous academic accolades during his time in law school and became one of the youngest graduates in the school’s history upon receiving his Juris Doctor in 2001. He wrote for well-respected publications, including the Global Business & Development Law Journal and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Your Civil Liberties (Chapter 23—”Taxing Matters: Internal Revenue Service.”).

Following law school, Mr. Dagrella honed his skills as a trial lawyer at a 1,000-attorney international powerhouse firm representing Fortune 100 companies and high-profile celebrities before becoming partner at Best Best & Krieger, LLP, one of the oldest and largest law firms in Southern California. Throughout the years, many of his cases have been profiled by print and television media.

A recipient of the Wiley W. Manuel Award for pro bono excellence, Mr. Dagrella proves equally formidable fighting for underprivileged clients. He has served as a member of the Los Angeles County, Riverside County and American Bar Associations. He has been married for over 15 years to Tongjai, a Registered Nurse at Kaiser Permanente, with whom he has two children, Roy and Rose.