BELLEVILLE – Edward J. Blake Jr. of Blake Behme Law Group, P.C., has been named one of Illinois' top ten family law attorneys by the National Academy of Family Law Attorneys (NAFLA).
“I felt honored in having been selected,” Blake told the Madison County Record.
Blake believes his experience with family law and team-approach contributed to the honor.
“I have been handling family law cases for more than 38 years and I believe we have assisted clients in achieving exceptional results. We have a team concept at our law office. The family law team includes myself, Jennifer M. Behme and Megan M. Gilbreth. All of us have extensive family law experience.”
The NAFLA describes itself as “an organization devoted to recognizing the top family law attorneys in the nation” as a means of “helping the public find the most premier family law attorneys in the nation.”
They award the top family law attorneys in each state with the honor of being named among the “Top Ten.”
“Mr. Blake is the only attorney south of the Chicago area to be selected by the National Academy of Family Law Attorneys as a top ten family law attorney in the State of Illinois,” the firm's press release states.
When asked about the future, Blake said, "I plan on remaining on the list by attempting to render exceptional family law services to clients in the Metro East area and throughout the region."
According to the NAFLA’s website, a number of factors go into the decision-making process. At minimum, nominees “must be licensed and in good standing in the state; must be in private practice; must have at least 5 years experience in family law; must devote a significant portion of practice to family law; [and] must be nominated by a licensed practicing attorney or one of our in-house research staff members.”
Additional criteria used to evaluate nominees include reviews made by clients and peers, years of experience practicing family law, case and trial outcomes, publication history, education and formal family law training, experience teaching family law, and other legal awards.
"The very few attorneys (less than 1%) that are good enough to make our list have demonstrated an extraordinary amount of knowledge, skill, expertise and success in their practice of family law," the NAFLA's website states. "We know it is a tough process but we wouldn't have it any other way."
Blake said he also has an AVVO 10 superb rating, "Super Lawyer" status, is part of Leading Lawyer Network and is "AV Rated" by Martindale-Hubbell as a preeminent attorney.