Dianna Albini

Dianna is a member of the firm’s Civil Litigation Group.  She is a former/retired State of California Administrative Law Judge. During her tenure, Dianna was responsible for presiding over hearings and trials and authoring written decisions involving high-profile administrative and regulatory matters, including:

• United States Department of Education;
• California Department of Education;
• California Department of Consumer Affairs;
• California Department of Developmental Services regulations and policies;
• California State and Federal Americans with Disability Act;
• California and Inter-State family law support adjudication;
• California State and the United States Environmental Protection Act laws and regulations;
• California Public Works Hearings;
• California Contractors Licensing Board;
• California Real Estate Board;
• Department of Consumer Affairs; 
• The California Dental Board; 
• The California Nursing Board and more.

Dianna has authored many in-depth legal decisions, and her work has never been overturned on appeal. Dianna also maintained a 99 percent successful settlement resolution of cases prior to trial at mandatory settlement conferences and mediations. 

Dianna volunteered and served over 10 years as a Judge Pro Tempore for the Superior Court of California in the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco. She has also presided over civil cases in the State of California’s Small Claims, Municipal, and Superior Courts for the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco.

Before becoming an Administrative Law Judge, Dianna was the founder and trial attorney at the Albini Law Group in San Francisco, California.  Dianna is a licensed California trial attorney with more than 32 years of civil litigation experience: she has handled numerous trials in Northern and Southern California. She has been granted special admission to the Bar in various state and federal courts throughout the United States. On behalf of her clients, she has secured multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements. Over her career thus far, her clients have recovered more than $50 million. Dianna is known for honesty, integrity, leadership, teamwork, creativity, exceptional oral advocacy, and interpersonal communication.  She handled complex civil litigation, including catastrophic injuries, business disputes, transactional law, real estate litigation, contract disputes, and civil rights matters. 

Dianna’s interest in the law stems from her belief that everyone is entitled to be treated fairly, equally, and justly regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, religious beliefs, or other qualities that make individuals unique. Dianna is known for honesty, integrity, leadership, teamwork, creativity, exceptional oral advocacy, and interpersonal communication. 

Dianna attended the University of San Francisco, in San Francisco, California, on a full-ride athletic scholarship, where she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Business/Sports Administration. She attended the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, where Dianna received her Juris Doctorate.

• June 1991 United States District Court for the Eastern District of California.
• 2014 Certificate of Completion, Northern California Regional Intelligence Center Training, Terrorism Liaison Officer. 

Dianna was appointed to work with the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center, and her responsibilities included detecting, preventing, investigating, and responding to criminal and terrorist activity, disseminating intelligence, and facilitating communications and investigation between Federal, State, and local agencies and private sector partners to help them take action on threats and public safety issues. 

Additionally, she is responsible for creating and implementing the security policies and protocols for protecting Judges and staff at the California Department of General Services, Office of Administrative Hearings. These security policies were later implemented and are currently used throughout California.  In 2016, the Supreme Court of Florida granted In-House Counsel Certification to practice law in Florida.

Dianna has the following academic appointments:

• 2012 to 2016: Adjunct Professor, University of Phoenix, Business Administration Program at the San Jose, Livermore, and Oakland, California Campuses. Responsible for teaching a broad curriculum of classes, including Business Law; Graduate Business Law; Business Communication; Organizational Leadership; Business Ethics and Business Management, Communication Law and Ethics, Ethics and Communication; Ethics and Social Responsibility, Ethics in Management; Business Communications and Critical Thinking, Strategic Business Communication; Business Communications; Understanding Ethics, Organizational Development; Business Management Theory, Practice, and Application. She was tasked with preparing a comprehensive and expansively evolving curriculum, syllabus, and academic policies; class instruction and collaboration; evaluation and grading examinations and coursework; student conferences; planned, preparing, and presenting continuing education and instructing techniques to university faculty. 
• 2012 to 2016: Volunteer Adjunct Professor, University of San Francisco and Hastings Law School. I have volunteered to mentor students in trial advocacy.
• 2012 to 2015: California State Bar, Committee of Bar Examiners, California State Bar exam grader. California State Bar, San Francisco, California. Prepared answers for the assigned bar exam questions and graded California State Bar applicants’ examinations.
• 2003 to 2009 Instructor. Created curriculum and lesson plans including civics, legal history, the law’s impact on students, and the law’s ethical obligation to society.  Charged with community outreach to local schools and school district offices. Taught civics and law classes in numerous high and middle schools in San Francisco and Walnut Creek, California.  Prepared and instructed government and civic lesson plans.

• Dianna has published the following cases and articles:

• Loomis v. Amazon.com LLC., (2021) 63 Cal.App.5th 466.
• Albini, Constant Vigilance, Office of Administrative Hearings, State of California (2013).
• Albini, The Luck of The Draw – Getting the Verdicts You Want From The Panel You’re Dealt: How To Select, Engage And Enlist Your Jury, Litigation Practice, San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association (April 8, 2008), Section III.
• Albini, Should Venue Matter in The Eyes of The Law? A Fresno Lesbian Fights for Equal Protection, the Trial Lawyer (Winter 2003), pp. 20-21.
• Albini, The Nuts and Bolts of Prepping the Auto Case – Where Rubber meets Road, Litigation Practice, San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association (November 11, 2003), Section IV.
• Fuller v. Bethany Apostolic Church (March 3, 1998) (2nd Dist. ) B107691, [Published at 61 Cal.App.4th 1119], (depublished on June 17, 1998, by the California Supreme Court, S069475).  

• Dianna has also received the following awards and recognition:
  • 2020 Consumer Attorney of California, Trial Lawyer of the Year finalist.
  • 2018 to present recognized by Lawyers of Distinction, Civil Litigation Top 1 percent Trial Lawyers in the United States.
  • 2017 to present Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers™ Judicial Edition AV Preeminent Rating. Highest possible rating in both Legal Ability and Ethical Standards Reflecting the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and Judiciary of California.
• 2017 to present recognized by Lawyers of Distinction, Civil Litigation Top 10 percent in the United States.
  • 2012 The State of California, Department of General Services, Office of Administrative Hearings, Superior Accomplishment Award.
  • 2008 Superior Court of California County of Contra Costa, Certificate of Appreciation for Judge Pro Tempore service.
  • 2007 Willie Mays/Hunter’s Point Boys and Girls Club – Coach of the Year.
  • 2006 through 2015, 2020 Northern California Super Lawyer.
  • 2005 to Present Life Member of the California Million Dollar Trial Lawyers Million Dollar Verdict Association and the Multi-Million Dollar Trial Lawyers Million Dollar Verdict Association.
  • 2005 Finalist, San Francisco Trial Lawyer of the Year.  Trial Lawyer, Turan v. Allied Shuttle, Superior Court of the State of California, for the County of San Francisco, the Honorable John E. Munter presiding. San Francisco Superior Court Consolidated case numbers CGC03-417771 and CGC03-417830. Albini Law Group represented Ulruc Turan, a San Francisco taxicab driver who rear-ended a van on Highway 101 in San Francisco, California. The verdict in Mr. Turan’s favor was $1,045,772.26, and statutory costs of $55,739.35.
  • 2005 Recognized by the University of San Francisco as “1 of 75 Greatest Athletic Legends to attend the University of San Francisco.” 
  • 2003 Finalist San Francisco Trial Lawyers 2003 Trial Lawyer of the Year.
  • 2000 to present Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers™, the highest possible rating in both Legal Ability and Ethical Standards reflecting the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and Judiciary of California. 
  • 1992 University of San Francisco Hall of Fame, Softball (third woman inducted into the University of San Francisco Athletic Hall of Fame).