After attending Colorado College and Mendocino Community College, in 1979 J. Thomas "Tom" Diepenbrock received his undergraduate degree from San Jose State University. After recognizing the benefits of practicing law, in 1981 Tom chose to join the profession enjoyed by many of his family members.
Beginning in 1982 Tom attended Santa Clara University School of Law, in the Silicon Valley, and in 1985 graduated in the top fifth of his class. Tom passed the California Bar Exam in his first sitting, and was admitted to practice in California in December 1985.
In his first 10 years of practice, Tom was primarily engaged in large and complex lawsuits. He spent several years heavily involved in defending hundreds of cases in state and federal court which were part of investment fraud litigation arising from the collapse of a high-profile investment firm. In 1992, Tom joined a defense firm and defended injury and medical cases in California trial and appellate courts. In 1994 through 1997, Tom was engaged in significantlitigation including litigation between the world’s two largest waste disposal companies, litigation brought by independent franchise owners against Exxon Corporation raising antitrust and other unfair practice claims, and construction defect litigation. In 1997, Tom joined a practice specializing in employment cases. In December 1999, Tom established an independent practice in San Jose, California, emphasizing business litigation and employment matters.
Tom and his wife Caroline were married in 1978, and in 1980 with the birth of their first child began the challenging but satisfying work of raising seven children, in the San Jose area. From the beginning, Tom and Caroline were actively involved in their church community, and became increasingly involved in the greater community, including participation in public school committees, benevolence ministries, the National Day of Prayer, and the Christian Legal Society.
In July 2005, Tom and his wife Caroline and four of their children migrated east, to Asheville, North Carolina, joining two of their daughters who had previously moved to the area. Tom and Caroline moved here to work with some close friends to establish a church community, known as Resurrection Christian Center, a non-denominational, evangelical, Bible-based church. Tom was an elder and associate pastor.
Tom sat for and passed the North Carolina Bar Exam in February 2006, and was admitted to practice in North Carolina in May 2006. He established an office in downtown Asheville in October 2006, and in 2007 completed two years of commuting between his California and Asheville offices! Tom’s practice in North Carolina has included business litigation, including construction matters; appellate practice; juvenile court practice representing parents in abuse, neglect, dependency and termination of parental rights cases; child custody cases; wills, powers of attorney, health care powers of attorney and advance directives; probate administration; and incompetency and guardianship matters.
After Tom and his fellow elders decided to close Resurrection Christian Center in 2014, Tom and Caroline were active members of a local non-denominational church for almost three years, and are now attending Asheville Mennonite Church.
Based on a passion and spiritual direction to work for “County-wide Revival”, Tom is currently actively involved in helping form and lead a new ministry effort aimed at promoting and encouraging the inter-related purposes of unity in the local Body of Christ, and revival and community transformation in Asheville and Buncombe County.
In his practice of law, Tom seeks to provide effective and knowledgeable legal services with dedication, experience, integrity and compassion, and integrate his faith with his law practice.