Hon. Anne-Christine Massullo (Ret.)

Hon. Anne-Christine Massullo (Ret.) brings decades of legal experience, including as Presiding Judge of the San Francisco Superior Court, to Signature Resolution’s neutral panel. Drawing on her experience as Presiding Judge, her tenure in the court’s complex litigation department, and her career as a federal prosecutor handling sophisticated and complex criminal and civil fraud cases, Judge Massullo has settled dozens of the most challenging cases across a wide spectrum. Additionally, she served for two years on the San Mateo Superior Court, where she was appointed to handle a high-profile death penalty and habeas matter. She joins Signature with a well-earned reputation for bringing creativity, tenacity, respect, and thorough preparation to every settlement effort. ​

Judge Massullo’s extensive background as a judge and as a litigator in private practice, for the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office and as an assistant U.S. attorney, has shaped both her commitment to guiding parties towards resolution and her extraordinary success in closing the deal. She is known for her ability to identify common ground by doing her homework, respectfully listening to both lawyers and clients, and carefully managing expectations throughout the process. ​

​Before joining Signature Resolution and leading the firm’s San Francisco office, Judge Massullo served for 18 years on the San Francisco Superior Court, a position she was appointed to by former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006. She has held various roles on the Court, including being the Presiding Judge, showcasing her versatility and leadership. One of her assignments included being in the complex litigation department as well as a civil trial judge. She often successfully conducted judicial settlement conferences and encouraged parties to resolve their disputes. ​

As Presiding Judge, Judge Massullo achieved transformative milestones for the court system. In the civil division, she implemented innovative reforms, including empowering attorneys to determine the timing of settlement discussions, streamlining asbestos litigation to reduce time to disposition, and cutting down the time for civil cases to reach trial or resolution. Her leadership reflects a commitment to improving access to justice and enhancing court operations. She also spearheaded the restructuring of court resources to tackle the backlog of criminal cases caused by COVID-19, ensuring more efficient case management. ​

​Judge Massullo also spent three years as the Supervising Judge of the Unified Family Court, overseeing the family law, dependency, and delinquency courts. During this time, she conducted numerous high net worth divorce trials and settlement conferences, including a case of first impression in California involving the disposition of frozen embryos in a divorce proceeding. In her Supervising role, she introduced a tentative ruling program for family law courts and initiated a mandatory judicial settlement program for long cause family law cases. This required parties to attempt resolutions before proceeding to court, conserving resources and enabling quicker resolutions. Before her civil assignments, she served four years as a felony trial judge.​

These experiences prepared Judge Massullo for mediation, where her ability to remain neutral, objectively assess the facts of a case and bring closure, is invaluable. Her insight into how juries might view cases enables her to provide parties with valuable perspectives that can prevent cases from proceeding to trial.

Prior to her time on the bench, Judge Massullo spent 17 years as an assistant United States attorney, handling both civil matters and criminal matters, where she was also the deputy chief of the Securities Fraud Unit from 2004-2005. Before becoming a United States attorney, Judge Massullo started her career in private practice as an attorney with McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen, LLP. ​

Throughout her career, Judge Massullo has earned a reputation for resolving antitrust, commercial contracts, complex business, construction, employment, false claims, family law, probate, and security fraud matters. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame and her juris doctorate from the University of Michigan Law School. ​

Judge Massullo served as a member of the State Federal Judicial Council. She was previously Chair of the Adult Probation Oversight Committee and a member of the Steering Committee for Commercially Sexually Exploited Children.