Dione Garlick

Dione Garlick is of counsel in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She currently practices in the firm’s Litigation Department and in the Real Estate Practice Group. Dione specializes in real estate disputes, including both litigation and pre-litigation advising. She also has an expertise in environmental litigation.

Dione has been recognized in the 2024 edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America for Commercial Litigation.

Real Estate Litigation: Dione advises clients on how to position themselves to be successful in real estate disputes, both before the dispute has arisen and after it has ripened into litigation. Dione has experience representing clients in a broad scope of contexts within the real estate industry, including disputes between joint venture members, enforcement of remedies, disputes arising out of acquisition failures, title disputes, landlord-tenant disputes, and disputes between real estate lenders and borrowers, among others. She specializes in creative remedies to achieve the best possible outcome for her clients.

Environmental Litigation: Dione also has extensive experience in both trial and appellate courts in high impact matters involving mass tort, regulatory enforcement, and cost recovery actions. Her regulatory experience includes challenges to decisions of the Regional Water Board, California Air Resources Board, and other California and local entities. She has experience litigating writ of mandate actions to challenge agency decisions in counties throughout California.

A sample of ongoing, non-confidential representations include:

• Commercial Landlord-Tenant Dispute: Dione currently represents a large, private equity firm as landlord in litigation against a current tenant, where the tenant claimed it was excused from paying rent during the tenant’s closures as part of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dione argued the motion for summary judgment, which was granted in full in favor of landlord. The matter is pending.
• ICONIQ: Dione currently represents ICONIQ Capital Management in litigation against a former advisor, who sued ICONIQ seeking payment for a finder’s fee in connection with ICONIQ’s acquisition of a property. Dione and the Gibson Dunn team successfully moved for summary judgment on the action, which was granted in full in favor of ICONIQ.  The matter is pending on appeal.
• Chevron: Dione currently represents Chevron U.S.A. Inc. in an action challenging a voter-approved initiative, Measure Z, which places restrictions on certain oil production techniques. On behalf of Chevron, Dione and the Gibson Dunn team brought a writ of mandate against the County of Monterey, challenging Measure Z’s enactment and alleging claims of legal preemption, among other issues. After a bench trial, the trial court invalidated two of the three provisions of the Measure on preemption grounds. After review, the California Court of Appeal unanimously affirmed the trial court’s decision. This matter is currently pending before the California Supreme Court.

Dione graduated from UCLA School of Law in 2013. While at UCLA, she was a member of the Moot Court Honors Program, earning the Outstanding Brief Writer award. She was also a writing advisor for first year law students. In 2010, she graduated magna cum laude from Utah State University with a Bachelor of Arts as a dual-major in Statistics and Law & Constitutional Studies with a minor in Latin. Dione is a member of the State Bar of California and is admitted to practice law before the United States District Court for the Central District of California. Dione is also a member of the firm’s Associate Business Development Committee.

Capabilities

• Litigation
• Energy and Infrastructure
• Environmental Litigation and Mass Tort
• Land Use and Development
• Oil and Gas
• Real Estate

Credentials

Education:

• University of California - Los Angeles - 2013 Juris Doctor
• Utah State University - 2010 Bachelor of Arts

Admissions:

• California Bar