Heather C. Ragone
Partner
Overview
Heather Ragone is a Partner and Business Unit Leader in Kelley Kronenberg’s Trucking and Transportation Practice Group. Heather has amassed over 20 years of experience defending complex and high-profile transportation-related litigation in New York, New Jersey, and federal court, involving everything from limousines, school buses, tractor-trailers, and dump trucks to double-decker tour buses. Before joining Kelley Kronenberg, Heather spent many years as the chief member of a New York/New Jersey Emergency Response Team. She now brings that experience and expertise to Kelley Kronenberg’s Rapid Response Task Force.
Always prioritizing the best interests of her clients, Heather engages in extensive interactions with police, prosecutors, investigators, accident reconstructionist experts, media, personnel, and other emergency responders. Heather assumes the dual role of a forward-thinking client advocate and a vital intermediary between clients and various law enforcement agencies at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as investigatory agencies, such as the National Transportation Safety Board. This role is especially crucial in the context of severe and high-profile commercial transportation accidents.
Heather has presented lectures to commercial auto carriers regarding not only the value and strategy of rapid responses, but also on New York and New Jersey litigation in general. She is a member of the Trucking Industry Defense Association (TIDA).
Recognized by the New York Metro Super Lawyers for eight consecutive years in the areas of Transportation and Maritime, Heather’s achievements are particularly notable. The Super Lawyers distinction is a prestigious honor, with only 5% of attorneys receiving this recognition, and an even more exclusive 2.5% being designated as Rising Stars, an honor bestowed on Heather for 2014-2015.
Before pursuing her Juris Doctor degree at the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University, Heather completed her Bachelor of Science in Biology at the City University of New York-College of Staten Island.
- New York
- New Jersey
- United States District Court, Eastern District of New York
- United States District Court, Southern District of New York
- United States District Court, District of New Jersey
- Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University, J.D., 2000
- City University of New York-College of Staten Island, B.S., 1997
- Led the post-accident investigation and successful resolution of 33 passenger claims, including two fatalities, arising out of an accident where a motorcoach swerved and crashed into a median to avoid striking a vehicle stopped in its travel lane on a high-speed New Jersey highway at night.
- Led the post-accident investigation and successfully defended a case arising from a motor vehicle accident (including products liability component) involving a dump truck that suffered a blown steer tire, lost control, and crossed over into opposing traffic on a New Jersey highway, where it landed on top of a vehicle, resulting in fatal injuries to the parents of two children waiting for them at home.
- Led the post-accident investigation and successful defense of a case arising from a commuter bus line and driver who struck and killed a 26-year-old foreign au pair after she disembarked from that bus.
- Participated in the post-accident investigation and successful defense of 30+ cases arising from a motor vehicle accident that occurred after a full-sized school bus made a U-turn in front of a dump truck on a New Jersey highway, resulting in two fatalities and multiple grievous injuries to both student and adult passengers.
- Led the post-accident investigations and successfully defended a case arising from a motor vehicle accident that occurred after a sizable piece of a dump truck’s metal brake drum broke off, flew through the air, and struck a 23-year-old motorist in the head, causing a shattered skull and blindness in one eye.
- Led the post-accident investigation and successful defense of a case arising from an accident wherein a tow truck operator struck and killed a 3-year-old child who exited their driveway on a bicycle and directly into the path of the vehicle without warning.
- Led the post-accident investigation and defense of a case arising from a left-turning tractor-trailer versus a 14-year-old bicyclist accident that ultimately resulted in a defense verdict.
- Participated in the post-accident investigation of a tractor-trailer versus Sprinter accident on the New Jersey Turnpike, which prompted a response from the National Transportation Safety Board.
- Led the post-accident investigation and successful defense of a claim by a homeless pedestrian who crossed in front of a commuter motorcoach proceeding along a New York State Thruway entrance ramp at night.
- Led the post-accident investigation and successful defense of a case arising from a motor vehicle accident involving a limousine company and driver transporting individuals visiting New York for a major sporting event when it struck a pedestrian, causing, among other injuries, a fractured pelvis.
- Obtained summary judgment, which was upheld on appeal, in favor of a bus company and its driver, who stopped short after being cut off by a vehicle at high speed, resulting in the standing plaintiff/passenger being hurled forward and into the windshield.
- Engaged in the pre-suit resolution and defense of litigated claims asserted by several of the passengers riding a double-decker bus that struck a low clearance railroad bridge in upstate New York, resulting in four fatalities.
- Led the post-accident investigations and successfully defended cases arising from multiple charter buses, double-decker tour buses, and limousines versus pedestrian accidents in New York City.
Practice Areas
Accolades, Associations & News
- Super Lawyers Magazine, New York Metro, “Super Lawyers,” Transportation and Maritime Defense, 2016 – 2023
- Super Lawyers Magazine, New York Metro, “Rising Stars,” Transportation and Maritime Defense, 2014 – 2015
- Trucking Industry Defense Association (TIDA), Member