John C. Dineen

Partner•Leader, Mortgage Banking Team
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John Dineen

Overview

John Dineen is an experienced litigator who represents clients in commercial and business disputes. The leader of the firm’s Mortgage Banking team, he helps clients navigate high stakes disputes in California involving real estate, lending transactions and consumer class actions.

Clients appreciate John’s ability to analyze disputes and quickly identify the chances for resolution through summary judgment or settlement, and the risks associated with trial or prolonged litigation. Skilled in explaining key issues to business leaders, judges and juries, John helps clients resolve disputes efficiently—whether through negotiated resolution or courtroom advocacy.

John represents clients in real estate disputes that call for both litigation skill and deep industry insight. Advising developers, owners, landlords, major tenants, institutional investors, private equity portfolio companies, and family offices, he handles matters such as:

  • Breach of purchase and sale agreements
  • Commercial lease enforcement
  • Title and boundary disputes, including quiet title actions and easement disputes
  • Land use and zoning challenges
  • Partnership and joint venture breakups

A veteran of the mortgage crisis in the early 2000’s, John has a deep understanding of both the real estate and financial services dimensions of distressed transactions. Financial institutions—national banks and mortgage lenders—turn to John when facing litigation over the origination and servicing of consumer loans. These cases often involve claims of lender liability, breach of contract, unfair business practices, fraud, negligence and alleged violations of the Truth-In-Lending Act (TILA), Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and similar consumer protection statutes.

John also defends clients in consumer class actions, with experience spanning California’s Gift Card Law, the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act, the Consumer Legal Remedies Act (CLRA) and California’s Rosenthal Act. He is well-versed in all phases of class action litigation, including coordinated proceedings in California state courts.

Experience

Secondment

Between April, 2012 and June, 2013 at the height of the mortgage crisis, Mr. Dineen served a secondment in Wells Fargo Bank’s Law Department. In that capacity he handled numerous litigation matters pending in California and other western states, which included managing outside counsel, responding to discovery, working with business teams to develop strategy and counseling the Bank on risk management and compliance with state and federal consumer protection regulations.

Representative Matters

  • Represented several national retailers (in separate cases) against class action complaints challenging clients’ gift card policies.
  • Represented several national retailers and restaurants (in separate cases) against class action complaints challenging clients’ respective credit card policies under the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act and California’s unfair competition law.
  • Represented a national bank with respect to a dispute between several parties involving a sublease of Native American land located in Palm Springs, CA.
  • Represented a national bank in defense of claims including trespass, malicious prosecution and invasion of privacy relating to a loan secured by a large ranch in Santa Barbara County.
  • Represented a national bank in defense of a class action complaint filed by a group of property owners in a development in La Jolla, CA related to the construction of the project and certain individual loans secured by individual units in the development.
  • Represented a San Diego based developer with respect to endangered species act claims that threatened to prevent use of the developer’s land.
  • Represented a subsidiary of a national bank in defense of a class action complaint brought by lessees challenging the insurance provision contained in client’s leases for certain commercial/business equipment.
  • Represented a home owner in a quiet title action involving the use, maintenance and access to a private road in Point Loma section of San Diego.
  • Represented national storage company in defense of a class action challenging client’s practices with respect to noticing rent increases pursuant to its consumer rental contracts.
  • Represented several national banks with respect to the defense of multiple (separate) lawsuits brought by residential borrower’s seeking to modify the terms of their loans and/or to prevent foreclosure following the borrower’s default under the terms of the respective loans.
  • Represented several clients in defense of (separate) complaints asserting alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act based on calls made by autodialers and allegedly unsolicited text messages.
Credentials
Clerkships

Judicial law clerk to the Honorable William Q. Hayes, United States District Judge for the Southern District of California from November, 2003 to September, 2005

Education

J.D., University of California, Berkeley, 2002, Chair of the Moot Court Board, 2001-2002, Associate Articles Editor, Berkeley Technology Law Journal, 2000-2001

B.A., Georgetown University, 1997, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa

Admissions

California

U.S. District Court, Southern District of California

U.S. District Court, Central District of California

U.S. District Court, Northern District of California

U.S. District Court , Eastern District of California

U.S. Court for the Ninth Circuit

Memberships

Member, Conference on Consumer Finance Law (CCFL)

Member, Association of Business Trial Lawyers San Diego

Member, Federal Bar Association

Member, San Diego County Bar Association

Member, Welsh Inn of Court, 2007-2009

Member, Ecology Law Quarterly, 1999-2000

Thought Leadership
  • Speaker, “Engagement Session: The Latest on Regulatory Expectations for Vendor Management”, Mortgage Bankers Association Legal Issues & Regulatory Compliance Conference,” May 26, 2021