Mr. Stoddard enjoys practicing in a variety of areas, primarily focusing on estate planning, taxation, real estate, and small business matters. He is now in his fourth decade as an attorney and has been involved in a wide variety of legal transactions. His daily practice usually includes clients who are buying or selling real estate, but he also represents individuals and companies in more complex deals such as 1031 Exchanges, corporate asset sales, commercial leases, and land contracts. His courtroom experience has involved a diverse range of matters, focused now on real estate and trust or estate matters. For many years Mr. Stoddard has also represented several drainage districts and fire protection districts, a rather unique area of local government law.
The Stoddard family has deep roots in DeKalb County. Mr. Stoddard was born and raised on the family farm in Malta, and he and his wife, Marcia, raised their own children in Sycamore. He is an active participant in the Sycamore Rotary Club, and has served his church, the Sycamore United Methodist Church, as trustee and administration board chairman locally, and as a director and chairman of the Northern Illinois United Methodist Foundation. Mr. Stoddard’s long-standing reputation in the community has allowed him to serve in a variety of volunteer and advisory positions, including many years as counsel to the DeKalb Area Association of Realtors.
Jim and Marcia and two of their three children graduated from the University of Illinois. As an undergraduate he majored in Agricultural Science, and was a member of the active chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho, an agricultural fraternity. Jim enjoys working with the agricultural community on estate planning, business organization, taxation, and asset transfers, and has actively participated in the Ag Professionals group affiliated with the DeKalb County Farm Bureau.