Alreen Haeggquist

Bio

Alreen Haeggquist is the Founder and Managing Partner of Haeggquist & Eck, LLP, which is recognized as one of the Best Law Firms  in America. Motivated by the pains of her childhood, Alreen became a lawyer and has been standing up for those who have suffered sexual assault, sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation for over 23 years. 

Alreen is also the author of Fired Up: Fueling Triumph from Trauma. She shares her deep personal story of childhood abuse and the steps she took to overcome the long-lasting effects. Her lived experience and trauma-informed training help her empathize with her clients and understand the value of providing trauma-informed service. 

Through her care and representation, Alreen has recovered millions of dollars for her clients in cases involving wrongful termination, sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and wage theft. She has represented plaintiffs in high-profile lawsuits that challenged defendants such as Donald Trump and Trump University, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, The Salk Institute, Kaiser Permanente, and the Grand Del Mar. Alreen’s commitment to equality, respect, and giving a voice to all, despite race, religion, gender, or disability drives her every day to do her very best for each person who entrusts her with that opportunity. 

For example, in 2021, Alreen successfully represented a San Diego Sheriff’s Department secretary at trial in a sexual harassment case against the department and its former assistant sheriff, and her 2017 jury trial verdict in a novel disability discrimination case against Kaiser Permanente was awarded one of the Top 50 Employment Verdicts in California. In 2018, Alreen represented a female scientist in a well-publicized gender discrimination case against The Salk Institute, which ended with a confidential settlement shortly before trial.  That same year, she also secured a confidential settlement on behalf of an employee of Jollibee, a national fast-food chain, in a case involving claims of sexual harassment, which after the motion for fees, totaled over $1.2 million. 

Alreen also served as class counsel in the high-profile consumer fraud litigation against presidential contender Donald Trump and Trump University, which settled in November 2016 for $25 million.  The settlement was deemed one of California’s Top 50 Class Action Settlements in 2016. For their seven years of work in the case, Alreen and her partners took no fees or costs.  

Alreen has been named a San Diego Super Lawyer every year since 2016, and was selected for inclusion in the Top 25 Women Super Lawyers and Top 50 San Diego Super Lawyers every year since 2019.  She has been honored for her work in Consumer Protection Law and selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers In America, including being named as Lawyer of the Year in 2022 and 2024, and she also ranks among the National Trial Lawyers Top 100. In 2021, Alreen was named a Woman Of Influence In Law by the San Diego Business Journal, and is a past recipient of the SDBJ’s Best Of The Bar distinction.  She is a co-founder and the President of the HAE Fired Up Foundation and is a founding board member and current advisory board member of Think Dignity, and was the President of the San Diego County Bar Foundation. 

When Alreen is not fighting for equality, she loves spending time outdoors with her husband, Michael, and their daughter, Maya. 

Education

• J.D., California Western School of Law
  • Graduated third in class
  • Editor-in-Chief, California Western Law Review
  • Editor-in-Chief, California Western International Law Journal
  • Honors Instructor, International L.L.M. Students
  • Dean’s List
• B.A., Political Science, University of California at San Diego; minors in law and society and Latin American history
• Graduate of Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyers College in Jackson, Wyoming

Awards

• Best Lawyers in America (2020-2026) 

• The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 

• San Diego Super Lawyer (2016-2026) 

• Top 25 Women Super Lawyers (2019-2026) 

• Top 50 San Diego Super Lawyers (2019-2026) 

• Woman Of Influence In Law, San Diego Business Journal  

• Best Of The Bar, San Diego Business Journal  

• Consumer Attorneys of San Diego President’s Award winner (2017) 

• 40 Under 40, SD Metro Magazine (2016) 

• National Association of Women Business Owners’ Women’s Advocate of the Year nominee (2016) 

• Top Labor/Employment Attorney, San Diego Daily Transcript 

• California Innocence Project’s Distinguished Alumni Award recipient 

• Women Who Change The Game’s “Mover & Shaker” Award recipient 

• Martindale Hubbell AV Preeminent rated 

Notable Cases

• $60,000 trial verdict in sexual harassment case against the County of San Diego
• Confidential settlement in sexual harassment case against The Grand Del Mar
• $401,000 Arbitration Award in a disability discrimination case against Lantern Crest
• Confidential settlement, plus $1.2 million in attorney’s fees, in sexual harassment case against a national fast-food chain
• Confidential settlement in gender discrimination case against The Salk Institute
• $492,000 trial verdict in disability discrimination case against Kaiser Permanente (ranked among top Top 50 Employment Verdicts in California in 2017)
• $25 million for class members in high-profile consumer fraud litigation against then-presidential contender Donald Trump and Trump University (one of California’s Top 50 Class Action Settlements in 2016)

Community Involvement

• President of San Diego County Bar Foundation
• Founding board member and current advisory board member, Think Dignity
• Litigation Section of the State Bar of California
• Consumer Attorneys of San Diego
• Consumer Attorneys of California
• California Employment Lawyers Association
• San Diego County Bar Association
• Lawyers Club of San Diego