Josh Hodges did not take the traditional path into law. While many attorneys head straight from college into law school and earn their licenses by their mid twenties, Hodges spent his early adulthood working in factories and other jobs before ever considering a legal career. He did not start law school until he was twenty nine and did not become an attorney until his thirties. His first job was at a massive Cincinnati law firm with nearly five hundred attorneys, a place he describes as feeling more like a corporation than a community. The work was steady and respectable, but he found himself representing government agencies rather than the everyday people he grew up around. He realized that if someone like a neighbor or a family friend needed help, he would not have been able to take their case. That realization pushed him toward a different vision of what his career could be.
In 2017 he left the large firm and started his own practice. A year later he teamed up with attorney Scott Kruger, who had been running a small solo practice of his own. Together they launched Kruger and Hodges in Hamilton, Ohio with just the two of them and one secretary. Hodges thought it made sense to brand themselves as the hometown lawyers because Hamilton was where they were from. What he did not expect was how quickly people from other towns would begin calling. Cases started coming in from Hillsboro, Brown County, and other rural areas across southern and central Ohio. As he traveled, he noticed something important. Many small towns simply did not have enough attorneys. Some had only one or two, often focused on divorce or criminal defense, leaving residents without access to other essential legal services. Hodges liked the feel of these towns and the people in them, so he began opening offices in rural communities and mid sized towns rather than the big cities where most injury firms cluster.
Social media helped accelerate that growth. Hodges began filming short spotlight videos featuring small businesses in the towns he visited. One day he stopped at Cafe 28 in Leesburg while driving to Chillicothe and immediately liked the atmosphere and the people. He returned with his videographer to film highlights of the businesses there, something he now does in towns across Ohio. He sees it as a way to give back, especially because many small businesses cannot afford professional marketing. His videos offer them visibility while also helping him meet the people who make up these communities. Over time that approach has built trust and familiarity. Hodges says he has probably been to Cafe 28 around ten times, which is ten more than most attorneys based in Cincinnati or Columbus. That consistency matters in places where relationships are built face to face.
Today Kruger and Hodges has grown from one employee to a team of about thirty, stretching from Cincinnati to Columbus and everywhere in between. The firm focuses primarily on personal injury cases, representing people hurt in car accidents, dog bites, slip and falls, and other situations where insurance companies are involved. Hodges says their approach is different because most injury firms stay in the big cities, while his offices and marketing are rooted in smaller towns. He believes in doing the right thing and staying local. National firms might take a case from Texas or Florida, but they will not sit down for coffee with a client at Cafe 28 or hand deliver a settlement check. Hodges wants his clients to feel like they are working with someone who understands their community.
The work is rewarding but emotionally heavy. People rarely call an attorney on a good day. Hodges compares it to doctors who see patients when they are sick. He tries to help clients put their lives back together, but he is honest about the limits of what the legal system can fix. Some injuries heal and some do not. Some families recover and some never fully do. He remembers the small cases most fondly, the ones where someone was not badly hurt and later sees him around town healed and grateful. The big cases, especially those involving deaths, are harder to celebrate. Even when he wins, he says, it does not feel good because something terrible has happened. In those situations he focuses on helping families stay afloat, maybe paying off a house or easing financial stress, but he knows money cannot replace a loved one.
Hodges also takes pride in the team he has built. As the firm grew, he could no longer personally handle every call or meet every client the way he did in the early days. That meant hiring people he trusts to treat clients the way he would. He has brought on many young employees and sees value in giving them opportunities. He also invests heavily in community involvement, from scholarships to sponsorships to the hundreds of free business highlight videos he and his team produce. He believes small towns deserve attention and that local stories matter.
Navigating the legal system can be confusing for people in the region, especially with the overwhelming amount of information online. Hodges encourages people to research but warns that not everything on the internet is accurate or applicable to every situation. Just as someone can misdiagnose themselves with medical information online, legal advice can be misunderstood without proper context. Every case is different, and he stresses the importance of talking to someone who knows the field before making decisions that could cause harm.
The legal landscape has changed dramatically in recent years. Large national firms now dominate Google search results, even in small towns they have never visited. Hodges says that if someone searches for a personal injury lawyer in Leesburg, the top results will likely be firms from California, Florida, or Texas. Competing with their advertising budgets is nearly impossible, so he focuses on being present in the communities he serves. Showing up in person, building relationships, and being visible on social media are his ways of leveling the playing field. It is a long term strategy, but one that has worked. Over five or ten years, people begin to recognize him, and some eventually call when they need help or even want to work for him.
Looking ahead, Hodges plans to continue expanding. He is considering opening an office in Xenia and expects to add new practice areas in the next few years. While he has focused on injury law to build a strong foundation, he hopes to eventually offer services like divorce, probate, wills, trusts, and small business support because people frequently ask for them. His goal is to help as many people as he can while maintaining the quality and personal touch that define his firm.
For Hodges, serving clients in this region is personal. He grew up in a working class family with no lawyers or doctors. His stepfather operated heavy equipment and his grandfather was a welder. Many of his clients come from similar backgrounds and do not want to call a lawyer unless they have to. He understands that and tries to hire people who treat clients with respect and empathy. He knows the firm is not perfect, but he works to make sure they care deeply about the people they serve.
He also has a soft spot for the small towns he has discovered along the way. He lived forty years in Ohio before ever visiting Leesburg, and now he stops in whenever he is nearby. He enjoys the businesses, the people, and the sense of community. He says he is glad he took that back road to Chillicothe one day because it led him to a town he now genuinely appreciates.
Hodges believes in shining a light on local stories, whether through his videos or by supporting young people who are doing their own community work. When he learned that the editor of The Leesburg Times is only fourteen, he encouraged him to keep going and offered support. He sees it as part of the same mission that drives his firm. People like local. Small towns matter. And showing up makes a difference.