Jon David Krahulik (December 31, 1944 – September 6, 2005) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, and

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

who served as a justice of the

Indiana Supreme Court The Indiana Supreme Court, established by Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution, is the highest judicial authority in the state of Indiana. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, Indianapolis, the Court's chambers are in the north wing of the Indiana ...

from December 14, 1990 to October 31, 1993.Minde C. Browning, Richard Humphrey, and Bruce Kleinschmidt,
Biographical Sketches of Indiana Supreme Court Justices
, ''

Indiana Law Review The Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is located on the campus of Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) in Indianapolis, Indiana, the urban campus of Indiana University. In the summer of 200 ...

'', Vol. 30, No. 1 (1997), section reproduced i
Indiana Courts Justice Biographies page

Biography

Early life, education, and career

Krahulik was born in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. His father was an immigrant from

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. Krahulik graduated from North Central High School. He then attended

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana University and, with ...

, receiving his

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in 1965. He received his legal education at the

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law The Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is located on the campus of Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) in Indianapolis, Indiana, the urban campus of Indiana University. In the summer of 2001 ...

, graduating in 1969 with a J.D. He was first admitted to the Indiana bar and was later admitted to practice before the

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, the

United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana (in case citations, S.D. Ind.) is a federal district court in Indiana. It was created in 1928 by an act of Congress that split Indiana into two separate districts, northern an ...

, and the

United States Tax Court The United States Tax Court (in case citations, T.C.) is a federal trial court of record established by Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, section 8 of which provides (in part) that the Congress has the power to "constitute Trib ...

. From 1967 to 1969, Krahulik was a member of the editorial board of the journal ''Indiana Legal Forum'', the predecessor to the ''

''. Krahulik practiced law in Indianapolis, first with the firm of

Baker & Daniels Baker & Daniels LLP is a predecessor to the firm Faegre Baker Daniels LLP (now Faegre Drinker), which resulted after the firm merged in 2012 with Minneapolis-based Faegre & Benson. Baker & Daniels counseled clients in transactional, regulato ...

(1969-1971) and then with the firm of Bingham, Summers, Welsh, & Spilman (1971-1990). Krahulik served as director of the Indiana Lawyers Commission in 1973. In 1987, Krahulik represented

Indiana Secretary of State Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th st ...

Evan Bayh Birch Evans Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011 and the 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997. Bayh w ...

in the case of ''State Election Board v. Bayh'' following a legal challenge by state Republicans who claimed Bayh was ineligible to run for

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

because he did not meet the residency requirements of the state constitution. Krahulik argued in Bayh's defense before the

and the court ruled unanimously in Krahulik and Bayh's favor.

Judicial career and later life

In 1990, Krahulik was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court by Evan Bayh, who was now the Governor, to succeed the retiring Justice Alfred Pivarnik. During his time on the bench, Krahulik emerged as a prominent defender of the

jury system A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significant ...

, authored important opinions on

tort A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...

law, helped to create the Indiana Rules of

Evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports this proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the supported proposition is true. What role evidence plays and how it is conceived varies from field to field. In epistemology, evidenc ...

, and also recommended to the Court the adoption of the "

IOLTA Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA) is a method of raising money for charitable purposes, primarily the provision of civil legal services to indigent persons, through the use of interest earned on certain lawyer trust accounts. The establis ...

" ("interest on lawyer trust accounts") program that granted lower-income Hoosiers greater access to the judicial system. During his time on the court, Krahulik authored 141

opinions An opinion is a judgment, viewpoint, or statement that is not conclusive, rather than facts, which are true statements. Definition A given opinion may deal with subjective matters in which there is no conclusive finding, or it may deal with f ...

. Krahulik resigned from the bench in 1993 to become president and

chief operating officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the "C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

of Chemed Corporation in

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. He was succeeded to the court by Justice Frank Sullivan Jr. In 1992, Krahulik became an adjunct professor at Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, teaching State

Constitutional Law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a State (polity), state, namely, the executive (government), executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as th ...

. Krahulik participated in the 1992

Ironman World Championship The Ironman World Championship has been held annually in Hawaii since 1978, with an additional race in 1982. It is owned and organized by the World Triathlon Corporation. It is the annual culmination of a series of Ironman triathlon qualification ...

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. Krahulik held his position at Chemed Corporation only briefly, quickly returning to Indianapolis to practice law with his sons, David and Sam. Krahulik died in 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krahulik, Jon 1944 births 2005 deaths American people of Czechoslovak descent People from Indianapolis Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law alumni Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court American judges