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A native of Madisonville, Kentucky, James Stoltz has called the Evansville/Newburgh area home since 2000. After earning an undergraduate degree in history from the University of the South (cum laude), Jim received his law degree from the law school at Washington and Lee University (magna cum laude).

Fresh out of school, he took at a position in the Securities Department at Greenbaum Doll & McDonald (now Bingham Greenbaum Doll) in Louisville. In 2000, Jim made the move to Evansville, accepting a litigation role with Rudolphe Fine Porter & Johnson (now Jackson Kelly), where he primarily performed personal injury insurance defense work. Four years later, he joined the litigation team at Evansville’s Meyer Stone & Stratman, where he began representing plaintiffs in personal injury cases. He moved to Jasper’s Birk & Birk in 2007, continuing to practice plaintiff’s personal injury, before starting his own firm in Evansville in 2012.  No stranger to the courtroom, Jim has tried over a dozen cases. As part of the Gerling Firm, our clients benefit from Jim’s extensive litigation and trial experience.

While litigation is rarely a pleasant process, Jim is proud when he successfully guides a client through a case. Jim knows that clients need an attorney who“has their back,” something that’s especially important in personal injury cases. Jim works to not only know the facts of the client’s case but also understand how the client’s injury has affected their life.

When he isn’t working for his clients, Jim enjoys fishing and golf, coaching youth sports for his kids, and volunteering with Evansville’s Youth First Teen Court program that allows juvenile offenders to be judged by a jury of their peers. His one brush with fame came when James and his former wife happened upon a film crew for Jay Leno’s Tonight Show, and wound up on that program dancing around a gigantic chunk of fried pork. No, that wasn’t a typo.

Litigation Percentage

  • 100% of Practice Devoted to Litigation

Professional Associations and Memberships

  • Indiana Trial Attorneys Association
  • Kentucky Bar Association
  • Indiana State Bar Association
  • Evansville Bar Association
  • Evansville Chamber of Commerce
  • Owensboro Chamber of Commerce
  • St. John’s Catholic Church

Representative Cases

  • Jane Doe 1 et al. v. Carmel Operator, LLC et al., 144 N.E.3d 743 (Ind. Ct. App. 2020)
  • Helsley v. State, 43 N.E.3d 225 (Ind. 2015)
  • Gasser v. Downing, 967 N.E.2d 1085 (Ind. Ct. App. 2012)
  • Hall v. Eastland Mall, 769 N.E.2d 198 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002)
  • MPact Construction Group, LLC v. Superior Concrete Constructors, Inc., 802 N.E.2d 901 (Ind. 2004)

Past Employment Positions

  • Stoltz Law Office, Owner, 2012 – 2016
  • Birk & Birk, Associate Attorney, 2006 – 2012
  • Meyer Stone & Stratman, Associate Attorney (Litigation), 2004 – 2006

Civic Activities

  • Youth Resources Teen Court – Attorney Mentor
  • United Way of Evansville – Past Panelist for Allocation
  • Newburgh Youth Soccer – Past Coach
  • Upward Bound Basketball – Past Coach
  • Newburgh Girls Softball – Past Coach
  • Aurora of Evansville — Past Board Member
  • Gerling Law Great Helmet Giveaway
  • Gilda’s Club of Evansville – Board Member
  • Southwest Indiana Chapter of the American Red Cross – Board Member