Elect Kim S. Dowling

Kimberly S. Dowling was born in Decatur, Illinois, in 1959. Kim graduated from the University of Denver in 1981 with her Bachelor of Arts degree and earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Colorado School of Law in 1984.

Kim and her husband, Ralph, moved to Muncie in 1984. Ralph began his teaching at Ball State University. Kim began the private practice of law in Muncie in 1985 and continued to practice until 2012 when she was elected Judge of Delaware Circuit Court 2.

Judge Dowling served as deputy prosecutor in 1990, Master Commissioner for the late Judge A. J. Hall from 1997-1998, and Title IV-D Commissioner from 1998-2000. As Master Commissioner, Kim presided over several jury trials, both criminal and civil.

As Judge of Circuit Court 2, Kim presides over a court of general jurisdiction. This means she hears all types of cases from general civil law, family law, and all levels of criminal cases. Judge Dowling also supervises the Title IV-D Court and the Juvenile Court and is the judicial supervisor of the CASA program.

Judge Dowling has served on the Indiana Judicial Center Education Committee, which develops all education programs for Indiana’s judicial officers.  She continues to teach judges at many of the annual conferences on numerous topics. She is the vice president of the Indiana Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, a board member of the Indiana Judges Association, a member of the Indiana Judicial Center Jury Committee, and a graduate of the Indiana Graduate Program for Judges. 

Judge Dowling’s first passion is addressing the issue of juvenile human trafficking in Delaware County and Indiana. She has attended several state and national trafficking conferences and has become a state expert on the topic. She has presented at numerous state and national conferences, and numerous local schools and organizations to educate the public about the growing problem.

Kim was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court’s working group to develop screening tools to help citizens, educators, health care providers, government employees, and law enforcement personnel in Indiana to identify victims of human trafficking.

As a result of that work, the Indiana Supreme Court recommended developing a subcommittee of the Indiana Commission on the Improvement of the Status of Children to continue the work started by the working group. Judge Dowling was named chairperson of that committee. She has also worked with legislators in Indiana to modify and create new laws to assist victims of trafficking.

While in private practice, Judge Dowling was committed to providing legal access to people with limited financial resources, and she has continued that interest as Judge. She became aware early on in her judicial career of the number of self-represented litigants in her courtroom and courtrooms throughout Indiana.

As a result of this work, the Indiana Supreme Court nominated Judge Dowling to assist in redeveloping the Indiana Pro Bono Commission.  Kim was appointed to the Coalition for Court Access and chaired its Best Practices Committee. 

Her work on that committee addressed the development and accessibility of court forms to help Hoosiers represent themselves and assisted in developing self-help centers in Delaware County and across the state of Indiana.

This resulted in Judge Dowling being appointed by the Indiana Supreme Court to the Civil Litigation Task Force in 2021.  Kim assisted in presenting the committee’s report to the Indiana Supreme Court, resulting in the Court adopting all of the recommendations made.  Judge Dowling’s Court has now been selected to be a Pilot Court to adopt a pathway approach to civil cases to provide faster resolution for litigants.

Kim and Ralph are the proud parents of two children, Carrie and Sean. Carrie is a graduate of both Purdue and Ball State University and works for Medical Solutions. Sean is a Purdue University graduate and works for Options School as a teacher. Sean and his wife, Erica, who works for Eli Lilly, are the proud parents of Seamus, who is three years old and the light of Kim and Ralph’s life.

Kim has volunteered time to her community, which she feels is an important part of giving back.  She is a member of Rotary, and she has volunteered through Project Leadership as a mentor to a local student.

Kim volunteers with her church.  She worked in the bookstore at Union Chapel Ministries, helped with SERVE and other community clean up and assistance projects, has served as an usher at Commonway Church, and has participated in many Harvest Fest activities.

In the legal community, Kim spent years serving as an officer of president of the Muncie Bar Association and oversaw its participation in a food drive for Second Harvest Food Bank. She was named to the Board of Governors of the Indiana State Bar Association from 2012-2014.

Paid for by the Friends of Kim Dowling, Keeta Edsall, Treasurer