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CONTACT CASE MANAGER

Hon. Lynn Duryee (Ret.)

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    Biography
    General Biography
    Practice Areas & Industries
    Business Commercial
    Construction Defect
    Employment Law
    Personal Injury
    Professional Liability
    Real Property
    Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities
    Background and Education

    Judge Duryee has excelled in the resolution of thorny legal disputes throughout her career, first as a trial judge for 21 years, and then at JAMS as a mediator, arbitrator, and special master. She is known for bringing a high level of preparation, engagement and professionalism to each assignment. Her deep experience in the law as well as her dedication to resolving disputes make her an excellent choice as a neutral.

    At JAMS, Judge Duryee has settled hundreds of cases involving real estate purchases and sales; construction contracts and claims of defects; employment matters, including unpaid wages and commissions, harassment, and wrongful termination; commercial contract disputes; trust and estate matters, including breach of fiduciary duties, accountings and undue influence; professional negligence; and a full range personal injury cases, including catastrophic injuries, premises liability, and sexual abuse. Judge Duryee has also managed multiple large construction and defect cases as a Special Master and has arbitrated to conclusion claims involving real estate, commercial, insurance and employment disputes.

    As a Superior Court judge in Marin County, California, Judge Duryee resolved thousands of commercial, contract and negligence case. During her tenure as the Supervising Family Law Judge, she settled hundreds of high-conflict, high emotion cases and eliminated the court’s backlog. Outside of her work as a judge and neutral, Judge Duryee has taught hundreds of courses to judges in all aspects of civil litigation. She served as Associate Dean and then as Dean of the B.E. Witkin Judicial College. Along with attorney Matt White she co-wrote Mastering Mediation: 50 Essential Tools for the Advanced Practitioner (Thompson Reuters, 2012). Between 2013 – 2024, she was privileged to teach Civil Procedure to first-year law students as a Visiting Professor at the University of San Francisco School of Law.

    ADR Experience and Qualifications

    • At JAMS, Judge Duryee handles a full range of real property, employment, personal injury, construction, business, family trust, sexual assault, and professional negligence cases, and is highly effective in helping parties achieve resolution
    • Served 21 years as a trial court judge where she presided over and settled thousands of civil cases of all types
    • Elected by her colleagues as Presiding Judge of the Marin County Superior Court
    • Under Judge Duryee’s leadership as a Supervising Judge, eliminated the court’s backlog in the civil, family, and criminal divisions

    Representative Matters

    • Business Commercial
        • Arbitrated and mediated commercial contract disputes involving claims for failure to pay, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, theft of trade secrets, unfair competition, exercise of stock option rights, failure to pay commissions
        • Arbitrated and mediated partnership dissolutions, fiduciary duty and accounting claims
        • Other arbitrations include breach of licensing agreements, breach of contract and fiduciary duties, breach of Confidentiality Agreement, consumer credit.
        • Other mediations include commercial disputes of all kinds between business owners/investors, vendors and customers, employers and employees, and competitors; investment fraud; compensation disputes involving independent contractors  
    • Construction Defect
        • Arbitrated numerous construction defect cases involving homeowner associations and individuals vs. developers and builders involving new construction, remodels, project delay, and mechanic’s liens.
        • Settled many construction defect cases, including condos, HOA claims, single family dwelling, and claims between generals and subs, generals and owners, and claims involving design professionals 
        • Experienced in reading plans, specifications, contracts, scope of repairs, change orders, CC&R’s, warranties, and expert reports
        • Judge Duryee’s father was a Builder and Designer of residential and commercial structures. She grew up with construction every day
    • Employment Law
        • Extensive experience trying and settling claims involving discrimination, harassment, wrongful terminations, hostile work environment, pregnancy discrimination, whistleblower and retaliation, wage disputes, Labor Code and FMLA violations, trade secrets, executive compensation and PAGA claims; employment disputes between and among family members in family business and disputes involving public entities, failure to promote.
    • Personal Injury
        • Arbitrated matters involving uninsured motorists, premises liability and elder abuse   
        • Settled hundreds of cases involving injuries and wrongful death auto, pedestrian, bicycle, electric bike, truck, streetcar/train, and motorcycle accidents; libel and defamation; dog bites; assault and battery; product liability.
        • Successfully mediated claims for premises liability, including slip/trip and fall and mold exposure
        • Extensive experience settling sexual assault and abuse claims as a judge and mediator
    • Professional Liability
        • Managed, presided over, and settled hundreds of claims for professional negligence including medical, legal, dental, architectural and other design professionals
    • Real Property
        • Arbitrations and mediations involving purchase and sale of real property, Homeowners Associations, building modifications, distribution of settlement funds, landlord/tenant disputes, failure to disclose and allegations of misrepresentation of property, commercial and residential leases 
        • Extensive experience mediating commercial and residential unlawful detainer cases, breach of warranty, violation of local rent control ordinances, and HOA issues with short term rentals
        • Extensive experience as a mediator settling mandatory pre-filing mediation of claims involving disclosure issues in real property purchase and sales ; quiet title claims between family members and co-owners; landslide cases involving adjacent properties.
        • Settled multiple claims between neighbors involving easements, parking, landscaping, encroachments, views, privacy, noise, harassment, and CC&R’s (Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions); unauthorized destruction of trees; neighbor cases involving trees, views, fence lines, trespass and related disputes

    Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

    Completed Virtual ADR training conducted by the JAMS Institute, the training arm of JAMS.
     
    • "John J. Meeham Mentor of the Year," University of San Francisco, 2014
    • “Judge of the Year,” Marin Consumer Attorneys, 2013
    • Marin County Women Lawyers Award for Outstanding Leadership and Dedication, 2008
    • “Bernard Jefferson Award for Distinguished Service in Judicial Education,” California Judges Association, 2002
    • Member, “Statewide Task Force for Impartiality of the Courts,” 2007-2009
    • Editor, “The California Bench,” 1998-2004


    Teaching Engagements

    • "Utilizing Co-Mediation: Bringing Together Multiple Perspectives to Reach Effective Settlements," JAMS, May 28, 2025
    • "From Conflict to Connection," Supervising Judges Institute, Administrative Office of the Courts, California, Feb. 7, 2025
    • "Settlement Success: Pro Tips for Lawyers," JAMS, Feb. 7, 2024
    • "Creating Trust and Earning Engagement," Hawaii State Judiciary, Center for Alternative Dispute Resolution, June 22, 2023
    • "Overcoming Impasse," North Carolina Dispute Resolution, Sept. 23, 2022
    • "Rookies in Robes," California Judges Association, April 28, 2022
    • "Psychological Dimensions of Dispute Resolution," JAMS, June 1, 2021
    • Moderator, "Judges of Color: Resilience in Our Roots," University of San Francisco School of Law, Oct. 8, 2021
    • "Blind Spots: How to Focus on and Fix Mediation Fumbles," JAMS, June 30, 2020
    • "Make the Most of Your Mediation," 7th Annual Women Lawyers’ Symposium, Santa Clara County Bar Association, June 13, 2019
    • "Happy Together: How Co-Mediation Can Lead to More Satisfying Results," Marin County Bar Association, June 21, 2017
    • "Ethical Aspects to Consider While Building an Arbitration Practice," American Bar Association, March 28, 2017
    • "Women Lawyers: Tips from the Bench," Alameda County Bar Association and JAMS, Oct. 19, 2016
    • "Secrets Revealed: Tips on How to Make Mediation Successful," Santa Clara County Trial Lawyers Association, June 2, 2016
    • "Common Mistakes Lawyers Make," San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association, March 3, 2016
    • "Make the Most of Your Mediation: Neutral Insights on Getting to Settlement," JAMS San Francisco MCLE Day, Jan. 27, 2016
    • "Tips on How to Make Mediation Successful," MCLE Spectacular, Contra Costa County Bar Association, Nov. 20, 2015
    • "How to Settle Your Case: Perspectives From All Sides," San Mateo County Trial Lawyers Association and Consumer Attorneys of California, Sept. 30, 2015
    • "Settlement Efforts," Civil Pretrial Workshop, Sonoma County Bar Association, April 17, 2015
    • "How Lawyers Can Help the Courts Run Effectively," Sonoma County Bar Association, April 1, 2015
    • "An Insider’s Perspective on Ethical Dilemmas in ADR," JAMS San Francisco Complimentary MCLE Day, Jan. 29, 2015
    • "Effective Negotiation Strategies for Women in the Legal Profession," California Women Lawyers Annual Conference, Los Angeles, May 16, 2014
    • "High Conflict Personalities," B.E. Witkin Judicial College, 2014–2025


    Selected Publications

    • Panelist, “[PODCAST] Utilizing Co-Mediation,” JAMS ADR Insights, March 2025
    • “From Obstacle to Opportunity: Strategies to Enhance Happiness in the Practice of Law,” University of San Francisco Law Review, March 2023
    • “Reconnecting With the Outside World,” JAMS ADR Insights, June 2022
    • Panelist, “[PODCAST] Reflecting on the Emotional and Psychological Dimensions of Alternative Dispute Resolution,” JAMS ADR Insights, March 2022 
    • “Co-Mediation: When 2 Heads Are Better Than 1,” co-authored with Jeanne Struck, Daily Journal, June 2017
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation: The Neighbor Dispute,“ JAMS ADR Insights, June 2016
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation: The Employment Case,“ JAMS ADR Insights, February 2016
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation: The Personal Injury Case,” Law.com, November 2015
    • “Pro Tips for Rising Stars,” Plaintiff Magazine, September 2015
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation:  The Single-Family Construction Case,” Law.com, July 2015
    • “Turning the Page,” ADR Profile, Daily Journal, May 2015
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation:  Seal the Deal,” Law.com, February 2015
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation: Effective Negotiations,” Law.com, November 2014
    • “Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow:  ADR in Review, The Recorder, October 2014
    • “Overcoming Impasse,” Plaintiff Magazine, September 2014
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation: The Brief,” Law.com, July 2014
    • “Make the Most of Your Mediation: Early Preparation,” Law.com, April 2014
    • “In Defense of Joint Sessions,” JAMS ADR Insights, April 2014

    Background and Education

    • Judge, Superior Court, County of Marin, 1998-2014
      • Presiding Judge, 2006-2007
      • Supervising Civil Judge for 11 years between 1999-2013, (Supervising Family Law Judge, 2005-2006; Supervising Criminal Judge, 2007-2008)
    • Judge, Municipal Court, County of Marin, 1993-1998 (Presiding Judge, 1995)
    • Private civil practice, Marin County, 1979-1993
    • Adjunct Assistant Professor, Hastings College of the Law, 1983-1991
    • Instructor, Hastings College of the Law, 1980-1983
    • J.D., University of San Francisco School of Law, 1979
    • B.A., English, High Honors, University of California, Berkeley, 1976
    Counsel Comments
    • [Judge Duryee] handled this matter with class, intelligence and sensitivity. She was extraordinary and I do not believe any other person would have been able to achieve this result.

      - CA Attorney
    • "Dynamic, discerning and dedicated! Judge Duryee is masterful in her ability to quickly hone in on critical legal, emotional, and financial issues. Her tenacity and creativity foster a collaborative and effective problem-solving environment that is unmatched." 

      - Partner, National Law Firm
    • "Judge Duryee was an extremely effective settlement judge, and now she is an equally effective mediator. She listens to the parties, genuinely wants to help settle the case, and shares her observations and experience in a constructive way." 

      - Partner, Bay Area Law Firm
    • "[Judge Duryee] has an innate ability to identify and connect with just about anybody." 

      - Partner at San Francisco Bay Area Law Firm
    • “I smugly thought that this case was not one for mediation… Lynn Duryee had other ideas. She worked the phones; she worked the email. Anything and everything to get us talking…She prodded. She questioned…She simply did not quit. She even called when she was on vacation! She maintained that this was a mediation case and worthy of settlement. She calmly bore through my stubbornness and of course, in the end, she was right. We settled. Her honesty was key… She is extraordinary and tenacious! In short, Lynn Duryee is a rock star.”
    • “[Judge Duryee] was extremely kind, understanding and persuasive to all parties”
    • "Dynamic, discerning and dedicated! Judge Duryee is masterful in her ability to quickly hone in on critical legal, emotional, and financial issues. Her tenacity and creativity foster a collaborative and effective problem-solving environment that is unmatched."
    • “Judge Duryee was exceptional. She made the plaintiff feel comfortable with the process and gained the trust of the plaintiff at the outset. She asked the plaintiff questions about her life, profession, passions, etc. which made the plaintiff feel like a whole person instead of a complainant. Judge Duryee masterfully used a number of tools to encourage settlement and put the parties within range of settlement. She knew when and how to assert her own opinions and recommendations. She brought the best out of the defense attorney…a brilliantly executed mediation.”
    • "[Judge Duryee] has an innate ability to identify and connect with just about anybody.”
    • “No matter what kind of case I have mediated with Judge Duryee, from malicious prosecution actions, employment law defense cases, to plaintiff auto cases, to business matters, she always finds a way to bring the parties together and achieve settlement. Judge Duryee recently settled a very complicated multi party construction defects case that had been mediated two prior times…Judge Duryee achieved settlement in one day!”
    • “Judge Duryee did an excellent job of winning the parties trust and helping all concerned see that settlement was a good option.”
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