Attorney Profile
Jim has more than 25 years of experience practicing in Illinois state courts and U.S. federal courts. His practice is large in scope concerning many types of civil lawsuit defense. He began his practice with Quinn, Johnston, Henderson and Pretorius in 1991, immediately following his graduation from Pepperdine University School of Law.
Three years into his career, Jim relocated to Springfield, Illinois in light of the firm’s need for expansion into Springfield and downstate Illinois. He helped open the firm’s office there and has remained there ever since. Jim takes great pride in Quinn Johnston’s successful expansion into Springfield, where the practice has grown from handling workers’ compensation matters and a few subrogation cases to a large docket of cases and staffing including three partners. During the last 20 years, the Springfield office has continued to grow and offers an opportunity for clients to utilize a familiar name in cases located in central and southern Illinois. Jim’s practice area ranges from Quincy in the west to Danville in the east and Bloomington in the north to Marion in the south.
Jim currently defends municipal liability tort claims, product liability cases, premises liability lawsuits and automobile liability claims. Although he has been involved in the trial of numerous cases in Illinois and in federal courts, his more recent experience concerns the mediation of files during the last few years; his focus is on achieving the most efficient result so that the trial expenses need not unnecessarily be undertaken. Toward this end, he often frames his cases for summary judgment, which he has received in more than 30 cases.
Practice Areas
Admissions/Associations
- Illinois
- U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
- Illinois State Bar Association
- Sangamon County Bar Association
- Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel
Education
- J.D., Pepperdine University School of Law, Malibu, California, 1991
Honors: Phi Delta Phi - B.A., Quincy College, Quincy, Illinois, 1988
Honors: summa cum laude, Phi Alpha Theta
Ratings/Recognitions
Illinois Leading Lawyers List, 2015-2022