Robbins Geller Announces Elevation of Partners in 2026

Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP elevated Patton L. Johnson, Taeva C. Shefler, and Michael A. Troncoso to partner effective January 1, 2026.

“We are honored to have emerging plaintiffs’ bar leaders and experienced litigators like Patton, Taeva, and Michael at the Firm,” said Paul J. Geller, one of the Firm’s managing partners. “Our new partners have demonstrated tireless dedication and commitment to our clients and our mission.”

“The best thing is being able to recover money for pension funds and individual investors who have been wronged by fraud.”

Patton Johnson is based in the Firm’s San Diego office. His experience in finance brought him to Robbins Geller’s securities fraud practice for the opportunity to represent investors seeking redress for false and misleading statements and other deceptive practices within the securities markets.

At Robbins Geller, Patton has successfully litigated securities class actions recovering hundreds of millions of dollars for investors, which include recoveries of $150 million in In re Zoom Securities Litigation and $73 million in In re Nielsen Holdings PLC Securities Litigation. In In re Conn’s Inc. Securities Litigation, he represented an investor in an opt-out case after the class represented by another law firm settled its claims.

In addition to litigating cases against issuers and individuals who made public misrepresentations, Patton has litigated cases against control persons, underwriters, and venture capital firms. He has investigated the basis for claims, briefed and argued motions, conducted discovery, taken and defended depositions, worked with consultants and experts, and rigorously represents his clients’ interests in often demanding and complex litigation.

Before joining Robbins Geller, Patton represented institutional clients in connection with cross-border financing transactions spanning a variety of structures and participants. Before practicing law, he worked at a global bank in New York and as an expat in Hong Kong.

Patton graduated with a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, and interned with Justice Ming W. Chin at the Supreme Court of California. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

“Robbins Geller is full of really committed people at every level, from staff to senior partners. It creates a culture that values hard work, intellect, and creativity.”

Taeva Shefler is based in the Firm’s San Francisco office. Her practice focuses on consumer and securities fraud litigation. She joined Robbins Geller as the Firm was preparing to represent the City and County of San Francisco in a bellwether trial in In re National Prescription Opiate Litigation. San Francisco alleged that manufacturers created a “public nuisance” downplaying the risks of addiction and overdose in marketing opioids, thus contributing to an opioid epidemic. The case also alleged that manufacturer, distributor, and pharmacy defendants failed to comply with federal and California state laws that require companies to assist in preventing diversion by reporting and halting shipments of suspicious orders of opioids.

Taeva was a key part of the Firm’s team building the city’s case. She interviewed several key witnesses and prepared them for trial, including the Chief of Emergency Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, a Department Chief in the San Francisco Fire Department’s Emergency Medical Services team, and physicians with the city’s Street Medicine team. These witnesses’ testimony was cited in the court’s ruling that Walgreens was liable for creating a public nuisance. The trial has resulted in combined settlements of over $350 million for San Francisco, including a nearly $230 million settlement with Walgreens. The trial also led directly to national settlements in the multidistrict litigation with Allergan, Teva, and Walgreens. The nationwide case has recovered more than $50 billion nationally from multiple pharmaceutical companies.

Before joining Robbins Geller, Taeva represented public entities in complex litigation and represented whistleblowers in cases alleging fraud against federal and state governments. Her practice at the Firm is a nexus of her experience representing public entities and fighting corporate fraud.

Taeva earned her Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from the University of Oregon Clark Honors College. She received distinguished honors for successfully completing and defending a linguistics thesis. Taeva received her Juris Doctor degree cum laude from New York University School of Law. While in law school, Taeva competed on the Moot Court Team, served as the Treasurer for the Public Interest Law Foundation, and was awarded the Eric Dean Bender Convocation Prize for her commitment to public service.

In addition to her work at the Firm, Taeva serves as the Treasurer on the board of Full Picture Justice, a nonprofit organization that provides mitigation and life history investigations for criminal defendants facing capital punishment.

Michael Troncoso is a partner with Robbins Geller. His practice focuses on securities fraud class action litigation and advising institutional investors in the United States and European Union on corporate governance and global policy issues.

Earlier in his career, Michael served as chief counsel to then-California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris. As the Attorney General’s primary legal and policy advisor, he oversaw the department’s most sensitive litigation, legislative, and enforcement matters. In this role, he was lead counsel for the State of California in securing the National Mortgage Settlement, the largest consumer financial protection settlement in state history that brought $20 billion in loan relief and direct payments to California homeowners. He also led the state’s Mortgage Fraud Task Force and its investigations of securities law violations arising from the issuance of residential mortgage-backed securities. His team recovered nearly $1 billion in RMBS-related losses for California public pension funds.

Michael also served for six years as a prosecutor and assistant chief attorney for policy in the San Francisco District Attorney’s office, where he tried numerous cases to jury verdict and led the mortgage and investment fraud team. In addition, he served as a Vice President at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and as managing counsel for health affairs and technology for the University of California, where he advised UC’s health and hospital systems on regulatory matters, governance, and transactions. Early in his career, he was a securities litigator at two international law firms and a law clerk to the Honorable J. Spencer Letts, United States District Judge of the Central District of California in Los Angeles.

In recognition of his advocacy and community service, Michael was named one of the “Top 20 Attorneys Under 40” in California by the Daily Journal, a California Lawyer “Attorney of the Year,” and a “Public Policy Trailblazer” by the San Francisco La Raza Lawyers Association.  He is a proud member of the Hispanic National Bar Association and an elected member of the American Law Institute.

Michael is a graduate of U.C. Berkeley and Georgetown University Law Center.