Blake Roter Named 2026 Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year by JUF Evelyn R. Greene Legal Services

Burke, Warren, MacKay & Serritella is proud to announce that Partner Blake Roter, Co-Chair of the Firm’s Insurance Recovery practice group and a member of the Litigation practice group, has been named the 2026 Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year by JUF Evelyn R. Greene Legal Services.

Through its partnership with Chicago Volunteer Legal Services (CVLS), JUF Evelyn R. Greene Legal Services provides much needed civil legal assistance to low-income families in the Chicago area and annually recognizes exceptional pro bono volunteers who go above and beyond in providing free legal services to marginalized clients.

Blake has represented several clients over the years with whom he has been connected through JUF Evelyn R. Greene Legal Services. In 2025, he successfully settled an employment discrimination case rooted in antisemitism, delivering meaningful justice to a client who might otherwise have gone unheard. Blake is currently representing a client in the Illinois Appellate Court relating to the denial of his unemployment benefits.

“I was very humbled and honored to receive this recognition,” said Blake, who recently completed six years on the National Young Leadership Cabinet through the Jewish Federations of North America. “It’s a privilege to help people solve problems that they can’t solve on their own. It reminds me why I chose this profession. My pro bono cases are often the cases that I’m most proud of. It helps to see what people are going through in their everyday lives, which you don’t always see as a corporate lawyer.”

During his tenure at the Firm, which spans his entire career in private practice, Blake has embraced and championed Burke Warren’s ongoing commitment to support a variety of pro bono initiatives to benefit individuals and legal aid organizations in the community. He has been recognized internally as a Pro Bono Champion and on teams which have been honored externally by the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Now, Blake is being inducted into the 2026 CVLS Pro Bono Honor Roll.  

“What distinguishes Blake is not just his legal acumen, which is noteworthy, but the compassion he brings to every case,” said Jessica Rhoades, Legal Liaison at JUF Evelyn R. Greene Legal Services. “He approaches each client with respect and empathy, ensuring that those most in need receive the same high-quality representation as any other. His professionalism is matched by a value to make this world more just, a belief he humbly puts into action.”

CVLS will celebrate Blake and his fellow honorees at its annual Law & Disorder awards ceremony on June 18, 2026.

Learn more about Blake’s pro bono advocacy at JUF.org and CVLS.org.