She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree with highest honors.

[2] de Alba worked with the ACLU Immigrants' Rights Project in San Francisco, California, in 2007.

[4] President Biden nominated her to the seat vacated by Judge Morrison C. England Jr., who assumed senior status on December 17, 2019.

Biden nominated de Alba to the seat being vacated by Judge Paul J. Watford, who subsequently resigned on May 31, 2023.

[17] During her confirmation hearing, Republican senators criticized her over her sentencing record during her tenure as a district court judge, as well as pointing out her lack of knowledge of basic constitutional law, specifically with regards to the Dormant Commerce Clause.

[21][22] In 2021, de Alba released from home monitoring an illegal immigrant tied to the killing of a police officer.