Last year, Justin Raver left his position as president of the Barash and Everett law firm and took a position as an assistant U.S. attorney in Rock Island.
But before long, Raver said, he decided that “It wasn’t a very good fit for me.”
Recently, Raver returned to Kewanee and opened a new law office.
The firm is called Karlin and Raver LLC, with Raver partnering with attorney Jeremy Karlin. Raver’s new office is in the building at First and Tremont streets in downtown Kewanee, while Karlin has an office in Galesburg.
“I’m going to get back to doing what I used to do,” Raver said.
That means focusing on providing legal services like estate planning and administration, “pretty much all aspects of bankruptcy” including farm bankruptcies, real estate transactions and advising on General legal matters.
Karlin will specialize in other areas, such as family and criminal law.
“The firm handles pretty much everything,” Raver said.
But if a client needs representation in other areas, such as medical malpractice, patents and trademarks, Raver said he can put them in touch with qualified legal counsel from elsewhere in Illinois.
“I’ve been doing this for 18 years, so I’ve developed a lot of friendships,” Raver said.
In addition to the new law practice, Raver has established a title company called Valkyrie Title Co. Jerri Ann Bumphrey, a paralegal with extensive experience in the area, is the manager of that company.
Raver grew up in Decatur, and after high school he joined the Navy, serving on the USS Nevada, a ballistic missile submarine.
After the Navy, he attended Southern Illinois University and graduated from that university’s law school. He went to work for Barash and Everett in Kewanee after graduation.
While working in Kewanee, his duties included serving as Kewanee’s city attorney for a time.
“I’m happy to be back in Kewanee,” he said. “The rural practice of law is changing. Lawyers are retiring and not being replaced. Kewanee needed more choices in terms of legal services.”
“I am excited to get back involved in the Kewanee community again,” said Raver.
