About M. Lynn
M. Lynn Duryee has spent more than four decades in California’s legal community. Her pathway runs from law school to private practice, into the courtroom as a judge, and into alternative dispute resolution. The arc of her career shows steady movement between practice, teaching and the bench.
Duryee earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of California, Berkeley in 1976. She then studied law at the University of San Francisco School of Law, receiving her J.D. in 1979. Those early academic years set the stage for a local career centered in Marin County and the Bay Area.
After law school she entered private civil practice in Marin County beginning in 1979. She maintained a practice there while building a reputation for careful legal work and attention to procedure. In 1983 she also took on an academic role, serving as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Hastings College of the Law. Colleagues recall her as a practitioner who also valued classroom engagement and mentoring younger lawyers.
Duryee moved from practice to the judiciary in the 1990s. In 1993 she became a judge on the Municipal Court in Marin County. Five years later, in 1998, she joined the Superior Court for the County of Marin. During her years on the bench she presided over a range of matters and handled the day-to-day responsibilities that come with trial court work. Her time on the bench spanned routine calendar management, evidence rulings and the steady decision-making required of trial judges.
Since leaving the full-time bench she has been associated with JAMS, working in the dispute resolution space. Her experience as a practitioner, teacher and judge informs that work. Clients and peers note that a background that includes private practice, courtroom experience and academic teaching offers a broad perspective useful in resolving disputes.
Her career is rooted in California law and in Marin County practice. She continues to work through JAMS in matters that draw on her courtroom experience and legal background. Her current practice focuses on providing alternative dispute resolution services at JAMS.
