This law firm was founded by Ray Freeark in 1965. Ray was a teacher and basketball/baseball coach at Belleville High School while attending law school. Ray was known as an extremely hard worker and was fully dedicated to his clients. Mr. Freeark was a perfectionist and was a mentor for all of the current partners in this firm.

Ted Harvey, a former student and player for Mr. Freeark, joined the firm in 1969, and is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers.

Jim Mendillo joined the law firm in 1974 after clerking in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in St. Louis, Missouri, for two years under Chief Judge Marion C. Mathes.

Ted Dennis joined the firm in 1983; he graduated from Illinois College and SIU Carbondale.

In 1985, Randy Wuller joined the law firm. Randy, a Belleville native, attended law school at St. Louis University and worked first as a CPA and then an accountant and for the Chromalloy Corporation before joining the law firm.

Jeff Cain, a native of Collinsville, Illinois, comes from a family of attorneys. His father has a general practice in the Collinsville area. Jeff attended St. Louis University where he was presented with the Don O. Pyke Award for scholastic achievement by the Advertising Club of Greater Saint Louis and was appointed to the school of Law honor society.

Michael P. Murphy is also a Belleville native and attended Creighton University and the University of Missouri Law School. He also began as his career in the accounting field, and then came to this law firm in 1991.