A History of the Rammelkamp Bradney Law Firm
Orville Foreman was brilliant and innovative. For example, early in the 1950s, Jacksonville was about to run out of water. Orville came up with the legal theory that Jacksonville had the power to construct a water transmission line to the Illinois River.
In the '50s, '60s and '70s, most municipalities in central Illinois came to Orville for legal help so they could build or improve their systems. If you live in central Illinois, chances are almost 100% that Orville, along with Ted Rammelkamp, provided the legal know how for your municipality to proceed.
An early dispute in Illinois was one between realtors and lawyers over what realtors could do and what lawyers could do. Orville drew up the Lawyers/Realtors Accord, a document still recognized by all lawyers and realtors in Illinois as the standard of conduct. Most lawyers are aware of the Electrical Suppliers Act, also drawn by Orville. Likewise, Orville was instrumental in getting it passed by the legislature. One of the projects Orville was working on at the time of his death was the establishment of a national grid between all electrical producers, public and private, in much of the eastern United States.
