About Timothy L.
Timothy L. Karns earned his law degree from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 2007 after completing a Bachelor of Science in biology at Purdue University in 2004. His undergraduate work in the sciences preceded his decision to enter law school and continues to inform how he approaches technical issues in litigation.
Karns is a partner at Wagner Reese, LLP, a role he assumed in 2019. He practices in Indiana and is based out of the firm’s multiple offices, which include locations in Indianapolis, Evansville, Fort Wayne, West Lafayette and Champaign. At the firm he handles defense work that frequently raises technical and scientific questions, drawing on his science background to evaluate expert opinions and evidence.
Early in his career he transitioned from academic science to civil litigation. He gravitated toward product liability and other defense matters. Over time he has handled a range of disputes for corporate and individual clients, counseling them through discovery, expert development and courtroom preparation. He is comfortable managing complex files that require coordination between counsel, experts and client representatives.
Karns has taken on leadership responsibility within the bar. He served as chair of the Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana’s Product Liability Section. He also maintains memberships in the American Bar Association and the Indianapolis Bar Association. Those roles keep him connected to developments in evidence, expert admissibility and trial practice that affect product litigation in state and federal courts.
Colleagues describe his approach as methodical. He pays close attention to the technical record and to how experts present complicated information to judges and juries. He is known for preparing witnesses and for testing opposing experts in deposition. He emphasizes clarity in written work and in oral argument, breaking complex subjects into elements that judges and jurors can follow.
Outside of litigation specifics, Karns’s background in biology gives him a steady vantage point when cases involve design, manufacturing or failure analysis. That combination of scientific training and courtroom experience shapes how he frames liability and causation issues for clients and the courts.
He continues to practice from Wagner Reese’s regional offices, representing defendants in product liability and related civil litigation matters across Indiana. His current practice focuses on product liability defense and civil litigation in Indiana.
