Diane Marshall-Freeman is a managing partner in the firm's Sacramento office. With over 20 years of legal experience, Ms. Marshall-Freeman is a highly skilled practitioner with an extensive background in all areas of general and special education law. She serves as general counsel to the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF).
Ms. Marshall-Freeman provides counsel in compliance matters relating to Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Section 504 and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); student disciplinary actions including expulsions and appeals; discrimination including Office of Civil Rights (OCR) and Department of Education complaints; interscholastic athletics and Title IX matters; and personnel-related matters including teacher dismissals, classified and certificated employee issues and discrimination and harassment claims.
An experienced litigator, Ms. Marshall-Freeman has successfully argued cases at the federal and state levels. As general counsel to CIF, she has appeared in state courts on matters involving student athletic eligibility, qualifications for Section and State championships, and CIF jurisdiction.
Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Marshall-Freeman was a partner in the Sacramento office of an education law firm. She served as Assistant General Counsel in San Juan Unified School District for 11 years, and was the Director of Labor Relations for Universal Studios Hollywood.
A popular speaker on education and athletic topics, Ms. Marshall-Freeman is often a featured panelist and presenter at state and national conferences. She received her B.A. and J. D. degrees from the University of California at Los Angeles. Ms. Marshall-Freeman has served on the board for the Omega Boys Club of San Francisco and is an currently officer with the California Council of School.