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Bryant Dieringer Wilson, LLP

402 W. Broadway, Suite 2700

San Diego, CA 92101

619-693-4900

BDWattorneys.com

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Bryant Dieringer Wilson, LLP handles high-stakes elder abuse, trust, and probate disputes across civil and probate courts—delivering trial-ready expertise when cases matter most.

Bryant Dieringer Wilson, LLP is built on several guiding principles: focusing on elder litigation in both probate and civil courts; maintaining a commitment to zealous advocacy, integrity, and professionalism; handling complex, high-stakes cases; and collaborating with other attorneys through referrals and joint ventures.

“People are living longer, and that presents a longer time frame for them to be taken advantage of, either physically by a nursing home or financially by fiduciaries, family members, or financial companies like life insurance companies. As a result of elders living longer, there remains a significant amount of wealth concentrated among elders, which makes them prime targets for financial elder abuse, particularly,” says Joel Bryant, Founding Partner of Bryant Dieringer Wilson, LLP.

Bryant points to a representative assisted living elder abuse case involving a 72-year-old grandmother with early-onset dementia who had been cruelly abused by her caregivers. She had been overmedicated, confined to her room, sexually assaulted through inappropriate touching by a male staff member, and had developed pressure sores after lying in bed for weeks without proper care. “We get a lot of tragic cases like this from other attorneys who are contacted by a potential client with a problem outside their practice area. We want other attorneys to think of us first when referring elder litigation cases. When they’re confronted with clients needing will and trust litigation, nursing home litigation, financial elder abuse, and related matters, we have expertise from years of representation of clients in these matters, and so we want them to think of us,” Bryant says.

Joel Bryant and partners, Rob Dieringer and Jessica Wilson, who have worked together for more than a decade, recently left their previous firm to form Bryant Dieringer Wilson, LLP. Their practice focuses on the intersection of civil litigation and probate litigation. They frequently accept cases referred by other attorneys whose matters have not settled and are heading toward trial. The firm currently includes four attorneys, three paralegals, and staff members.

Wilson says one of the firm’s goals is to become the go-to resource for colleagues in the legal community who encounter cases that require elder law litigation expertise, as well as cross-over elder litigation in multiple forums. “We want to be outward-facing to our contemporaries and let them know that if they’re looking for someone who has the requisite knowledge base and track record in this arena, we litigate in civil and in the probate division, we can do both. I believe we are unique because of our knowledge base, experience, and skill set, and the number of referrals we get supports this belief,” she says.

Dieringer explains that the partners’ decision to form their own firm was driven by a desire to concentrate their practice on elder litigation. “We wanted to focus all our efforts on doing what we do best: elder litigation. Joel and Jessica are truly hardcore litigators, and I’m an elder law specialist. It’s a very powerful combination.”

Wilson previously practiced corporate litigation on the defense side. She says her perspective changed after learning more about elder abuse litigation. “When I met Joel and learned about these types of cases, it really struck a chord with me. I thought this was a very important area of the law that might be underserved. I feel a connection to this work because what we’re doing really helps people and families directly.”

The firm’s clients typically include elders and their surviving family members or heirs, trustees, beneficiaries of wills or trusts, and other interested parties. Typical clients also include families of dependent adults—elderly or not—who are under the care of another person or healthcare provider. Under California law, elders and dependent adults are protected equally. The Legislature provides a framework for litigating elder abuse cases that often includes enhanced remedies for nursing home and assisted living cases; this is designed to assist and incentivize litigators to take up this important cause. 

The team recalls another representative case, this one involving trust and real estate matters and the son and daughter of an elderly man who had been taken advantage of financially by his girlfriend. When the children arrived to visit their father, they discovered he had been placed in hospice. Even more surprising, the girlfriend announced that she had married him—something the family had never heard before. Their father could barely talk and appeared heavily medicated. The children contacted the police, and their father was taken to the hospital. While at their father’s house, they discovered he had signed a will only a few days earlier, giving his house to his new wife. BDW obtained a restraining order preventing the wife from contacting the father, moved him closer to his daughter, obtained a conservatorship, and contested the trust. The case lasted more than a year and involved testimony from doctors, lawyers, neighbors, and family members. Ultimately, the father was taken off hospice and lived for several more years, spending his final days where he belonged: with his children and grandchildren. 

© Bauman Photographers

In other undue influence cases, caregivers responsible for an elder’s physical and mental care have persuaded patients to sign deeds over their homes or grant access to funds and other resources. The typical fact patterns seen are expanding to crossover cases, which involve exploitation of finances in combination with a failure to provide adequate care for persons under the defendants’ care and custody. BDW attorneys have seen situations where an elderly person was unsupervised, eloped from the facility, and was severely injured outside in the rain or freezing weather, with no response for hours from caregiving staff. 

“We represent extreme cases. If I had one message for the legal community, it’s that we are the people to go to when an elder has been abused, seriously hurt or killed, or had millions of dollars stolen from them,” Dieringer says.

Wilson adds that the firm’s narrow focus benefits both clients and referring attorneys. “Because we’ve taken this approach to a niche area of the law and dedicated our time to be on the cutting edge of this practice area, people can feel good about making referrals to the right attorneys. We bridge probate litigation, civil litigation, financial elder abuse, and nursing home elder abuse together in one place,” she says.

Team Work

All three partners graduated from the University of San Diego School of Law and have longstanding personal and professional roots in San Diego’s legal community. Associate Attorney Madison Miller joined the team in 2022 and serves as an integral member, bringing a balance of enthusiasm and a fresh perspective, along with an innate ability to understand and address complex legal issues. Together, the BDW attorneys bring more than 75 years of combined legal experience to their clients.

“During the decade we worked together at another firm, we discovered not only a real passion for representing elders and protecting the legal rights of this vulnerable population, but we also bonded over a commitment to integrity, perseverance, and winning for our clients,” Bryant says.

Dieringer says the partners’ complementary strengths contribute to the firm’s success. “Joel has been litigating in San Diego for 36 years; there is nothing he hasn’t seen. He was the first attorney in San Diego to regularly handle both financial elder abuse and nursing home abuse cases. Jessica has substantial prior litigation experience, including on the defense side, enabling her to accurately anticipate what strategies our opponents are likely to pursue. She has the technical aptitude to defeat any kind of motion. If an opponent thinks they can overwork and exhaust us with technicalities, they’re mistaken. We’ve been there and done that with tried-and-true results, and we repeatedly find success for our clients.”

Dieringer adds, “And I’m the certified specialist. I know the Probate Code forward and backward. Prior to joining Joel and Jessica, I handled estate planning, probate administration and trust administration matters. That transactional experience uniquely positions me to successfully litigate disputes in probate court involving wills, trusts, and related matters.” 

Bryant summarizes the firm’s role in the local legal landscape. “We are the premier elder litigation firm in San Diego, regularly handling complex litigation in probate and civil court. I’m not aware of any other firm in San Diego that is equally versed and comfortable litigating cases through trial in both civil and probate courts,” he says.



“Our family faced an issue we never expected. Our beloved mother, Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother was declared incompetent, moved out of her home, and all of her accounts were frozen. All of this by one other family member. We were all at a loss as to what to do until we found Mr. Bryant. He was a true advocate for our family. He was with us every step of the way and truly fought for us, never wavering in his commitment to our cause. A very resourceful and creative thinker, he explored all options and avenues to strengthen our case and bring about positive results. Mr. Bryant saw this case through to the very end, and now Grandma is back in San Diego and doing great. Forever grateful.” —Former Client