Gayle Gerling Pettinga
Principal, Managing Attorney
The first thing you’ll notice when you meet attorney Gayle Gerling is her energy and her focus. You’ll notice that she really listens to you, listens to your story and connects with you on a personal level. She has a gift for understanding exactly what you and your family are going through, understanding the pain you may have experienced due to the negligence or recklessness of others.
In a word, she’s engaged.
You might not be looking for a friend, but you’ll know this right away – Gayle Gerling will be on your side, at your side, every step of the way.
And isn’t this really what matters? Knowing that your attorney is at your side – fully prepared, experienced, knowledgeable and ready to aggressively protect your legal rights and get you the compensation you deserve?
Gayle’s compassion for those in need extends beyond her personal injury clients at Gerling Law. Just ask the 5,000 area children who have received free bicycle helmets as part of the Great Helmet Give-away and Safety Day that Gayle launched in 2006. Or the victims of abuse who have sought refuge at Holly’s House or the cancer patients who receive support from Gilda’s Club of Evansville, two local non-profit organizations on whose boards of directors Gayle currently serves. In fact, the list of charitable and non-profit organizations in Evansville, Indianapolis and Louisville that benefit from the generosity of Gayle and her colleagues at Gerling Law now includes over 100 organizations.
Born and raised in Evansville, Gayle is a respected, experienced lawyer and a valued community leader. She graduated near the top of her class at IU’s prestigious Mauer School of Law. She’s practiced law with one of the largest firms in Indianapolis as well as one the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. And that means she knows how big law firms and big companies think and how they operate – and she will put that knowledge to work for you.
When Gayle’s father, distinguished personal injury attorney Gary Gerling, decided that it was time to step down from leading the firm he founded in 1963, he didn’t have to look far to find a talented, energetic and compassionate attorney to take over the practice. He looked to his daughter, Gayle Gerling, and now she leads an experienced group of results-oriented personal injury attorneys with offices in Evansville, Indianapolis and Louisville.
Professional Experience
At Gerling Law, Gayle has successfully represented clients in complex cases involving medical malpractice, wrongful death, brain injury, paralysis, product liability and serious personal injuries.
Honors
- Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum
- American Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers 2007
- Finalist, 2010 Spirit of Giving Award of the Vanderburgh Community Foundation
- Finalist, Celebration of Leadership Award of Leadership of Evansville
- Finalist, 2009 Spirit of Giving Award of the Vanderburgh Community Foundation
- Indiana Law Journal Editorial Board – Senior Note Editor
- Congressional Internship, Jean Picker Program, Hon. Albert Gore, Jr.
Professional Associations
- American Trial Lawyers Association
- American Association for Justice
- Indiana Trial Lawyer Association – Board Member (2002 until present); Former Member of Law Pac, Amicus Curiae and Paralegal Training Committees
- American Bar Association
- Indiana State Bar Association
- Evansville Bar Association – Past Member of the Court Action Committee; Past Chair of the Law Day Committee
- Evansville Bar Foundation – Barristers Circle; Past Board Member
- Indianapolis Bar Association – Past Board Member; Past Chair of the Women and the Law Division
- Brain Injury Association of Indiana
Civic Activities
- Gerling Law Great Helmet Giveaway – Founder and Organizer
- Gerling Law “Hang Up and Drive” Campaign in Partnership with WIKY-FM
- Holly's House Board Member
- Women’s Fund of Vanderburgh County – 2nd Vice Chair; Board Member; Member of Grants Committee
- Gilda’s Club of Evansville – Board Member; Chair of Building Committee; Finance Committee Member
- Juvenile Guidance Foundation – Board Member; Founding Member; Former President
- Culver Academies Parent Board – Board Member
- Children’s Museum of Evansville – Advisory Board Member; Past Member of Capital Campaign Committee
- Indiana University Maurer School of Law Alumni Advisory Board – Past Board Member
- Evansville Day School – Past Board President; Past Board Member; Past Chair of Strategic Planning Committee
- Habitat for Humanity – Past Member Project Committee for Law Build
- Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra – Past Board Member
- Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra – Past Board Member
- Indiana Governor’s Art Awards – Past Chair of Corporate Solicitation
- Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce – Past Member of Partners in Education Committee
- Race for the Cure – Past Team Organizer
- Indiana Repertory Theatre Velodrama – Past Team Organizer
- Acros Gymnastics Booster Club – Past President and Board Member
- Evansville Christian Life Center – Volunteer
- United Way of Indianapolis – Past Panelist for Allocations
Memberships
- Smith College Alumnae Association
- Crossroads Christian Church
- Evansville Chamber of Commerce
- A Network of Evansville Women
- Better Business Bureau
Publications
- Published Note, “Rational Basis With Bite: Intermediate Scrutiny by Any Other Name,” 62 Indiana Law Journal 779 (1986).
- Schrader v. Eli Lilly and Co., 639 N.E.2d 258 (Ind. 1994).