Diane Marcella Barnes

Diane M. Barnes-Reynolds is a Partner at Butler Pappas. Diane first joined the firm in 2005. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Florida in 2000 and her Juris Doctorate from Florida State University College of Law in 2003.

Diane's litigation practice focuses upon first-party coverage, including windstorm, water damage, collapse, sinkhole, builder's risk, theft, jewelry and business interruption claims. She has additional experience in the areas of insurance fraud and inflated claims.

She is a member of The Florida Bar, The Hillsborough County Bar Association, and a former Board Member of the Tallahassee Women Lawyers. In addition to Florida state courts, Diane is admitted to practice in the United States District Courts for the Middle District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Western District of Michigan and District of Colorado.

Diane is an alumna of the International Association of Defense Counsel Trial Academy and of the Hillsborough County Bar Association Leadership Institute.  Diane authored "Punitive Damages – The Rationale of Ratios" for Mealey's Litigation Report: Insurance Bad Faith (Vol. 21, #16, December 18, 2007).  Diane presented "Actual Cash Value, An Element-by-Element Analysis" for The Property & Liability Resource Bureau (formerly The Property Loss Research Bureau) Claims Conference in 2013 and 2014, and is slated to present "How Did We Get Here? Documenting Denials and Denial Letters" at the 2015 Claims Conference.

Prior to joining Butler Pappas, Diane practiced franchise law in Tallahassee, Florida, focusing on relationships between automobile dealers and their manufacturers. While in law school, she was vice president of the Mock Trial Team, and recipient of accolades including: State Champion of the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers Mock Trial Competition in 2002, taking the Best Advocate Award at the same competition, and Finalist at the Association of Trial Lawyers of America Mock Trial Competition in 2002. During her law school career, Diane interned for a telecommunications law firm in Washington, D.C., for the Children's Advocacy Center in Tallahassee, Florida, and as a judicial clerk in the Second Judicial Circuit, Felony Division.