DIANE V. DEVASTO

Having completed the A.A. White Dispute Resolution Center Mediation Training Course, Judge DeVasto is now broadening her Mediation and ADR practice. The experience gained through her twenty-three years in the judiciary has given her a keen awareness of the practicality and usefulness of effective mediation and ADR. After serving in the judiciary, she was associated with the Potter Minton law firm in Tyler, Texas from 2006-2019.

Judge DeVasto’s experience and expertise from years of dealing with complex and complicated claims makes her a vital sounding board for litigation matters. Mediation and ADR are a primary focus of Judge DeVasto’s practice.

As a judge, Ms. DeVasto has been involved in statewide issues affecting the legal profession, including indigent defense in criminal matters, penal code revision, judicial education, and appellate and civil trial practice.

Judge DeVasto’s judicial experience began with the Tyler Municipal Court in 1981, where she served as the Presiding Judge from 1983-1994, when she was elected to serve as the Smith County Court at Law Judge. In 1995, she was appointed to the 241st Judicial District Court, where she served until 2003. Judge DeVasto served as a justice for the 12th Court of Appeals from 2003-2006.

A member of the American Law Institute, Judge DeVasto is also the 2011 recipient of the Smith County Bar Association Award of Excellence and several other awards. Her community service consists of service on the Board of Directors or Advisory Boards for Tyler Independent School District Foundation, People Attempting to Help (PATH), Children's Village, Hospice, Historic Tyler, Inc., Tyler Teen Court, East Texas Crisis Center, and Park of East Texas.

Judge DeVasto was born in Ft. Worth, Texas. She has made Tyler her home for more than forty years and has a daughter, son-in-law, and two grandchildren.