Diane Mahoney, Attorney at Law

Diane Mahoney received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from San Jose State University, California (1979), and her Juris Doctor from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, Sacramento (1982).

Ms. Mahoney has practiced immigration law since 1986. She spent several years working with low-income immigration clients, handling family-based and deportation defense cases as the staff attorney with the Catholic Social Service Immigration Program for the Diocese of Sacramento. She later went into private immigration practice, first as an associate with the law firm of Douglas Lehrman, then starting a partnership with Corrine Nikolenko, both based in Sacramento.

Ms. Mahoney partnered with Ms. Tomlinson in May 2003.  She enjoys assisting families, individuals, and businesses with a wide range of immigration matters.  Her areas of particular interest are political asylum claims, adjustment of status cases, and appellate work.  She has successfully represented clients in permanent residence and citizenship interviews, in removal proceedings, and in federal court.

Ms. Mahoney volunteers for community workshops and clinics sponsored by the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation.  She also meets with local immigrant community groups to answer questions and educate them concerning their rights under the immigration laws.  She has held trainings in basic immigration law for family law attorneys and is the author of an article entitled “Basic Immigration Law for Family-Law Attorneys,” published in The Family Law News, Issue 4, Vol. 26, No. 4 (2004).  She is a member of AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association) and is a past Liaison for the Sacramento CIS Office (2001-2003).

Erica L. Tomlinson, Attorney at Law

Erica Tomlinson received her Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from St. John’s College, New Mexico (1994), and her Juris Doctor from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, San Francisco (1999). 

Ms. Tomlinson practiced general immigration law and deportation defense with the firm of Simmons & Ungar in San Francisco, California from 1999 to 2001, and employment-based immigration law with the Sacramento office of the national immigration firm of Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy from 2001 to 2002.

Ms. Tomlinson became a partner of Mahoney, Nikolenko & Tomlinson in May 2003. She enjoys representing families, individuals, and businesses in a wide range of immigration matters.  Her areas of particular interest include E-2 treaty investor visas, L-1 intra-company transferee visas, and H-1B professional worker visas; family-based immigration and waivers of inadmissibility; aliens of extraordinary ability and outstanding researchers; and derivative citizenship for children. She has successfully represented clients in removal proceedings as applicants for asylum, adjustment of status, and cancellation of removal.

Ms. Tomlinson is a contributing editor for the employment-based immigration chapter of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center’s Advocate’s Guide, and she volunteers for community workshops and clinics sponsored by the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, and the Diocese of Sacramento. She is a member of AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association) and has been invited to speak at AILA regional and national conferences on family-based immigration and waivers.  She co-authored an article on inadmissibility for the 2008 AILA California Conference Handbook.  She is also the co-author with Katherine Brady of the article “Intent Requirement of the Aggravated Felony ‘Crime of Violence’,” published in Bender’s Immigration Bulletin V.4 No. 10 (May 15, 1999). Ms. Tomlinson is fluent in Spanish and conversant in French.

Sarah Farnsworth, Attorney at Law

Ms. Farnsworth is a graduate of the University of California Berkeley (2004) and University of California Davis King Hall School of Law (2007). While in law school, Ms. Farnsworth participated in the Immigration Law Clinic, representing detained non-citizens in removal proceedings, state criminal proceedings, and federal litigation.  She helped create a Refugee Law course at U.C. Davis and attended a student delegation to the U.S.-Mexico border.

As a founding member of Community Advocates United for Immigrant Liberation, a community-based education and advocacy group, Ms. Farnsworth has organized several immigrants’ rights marches and “know-your-rights” trainings.  She has also served as a volunteer legal advocate for Asylum Access, helping launch a refugee legal aid clinic in Quito, Ecuador.

Ms. Farnsworth is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). As an associate at Mahoney & Tomlinson, Ms. Farnsworth has represented clients in family-based petitions, asylum, and removal proceedings. She is conversant in Spanish.

All of the attorneys are admitted to the Supreme Court of the State of California, and are active members of the State Bar of California.