Jeff Williams is widely regarded as one of the leading matrimonial attorneys in the greater Philadelphia area, and by almost all accounts is the top divorce attorney in Bucks County. Poised, yet always candid, experienced yet youthful (rivals say the 47-year-old Williams could pass for much younger), Williams brings strong instincts and honed litigation skills to his work, which have made him a fixture in Philadelphia-area divorce law for nearly two decades. Williams, who grew up in Downingtown, Pa., was a competitive lacrosse player at The Haverford School and later at Dickinson College. He aspired to the law with an eye on becoming a criminal prosecutor, and took a position right out of law school as an Assistant District Attorney in the Bucks County Prosecutor's Office, giving him valuable courtroom experience. In 1985 he joined a small New Hope, Pa., litigation practice. It was there that he began focusing on matrimonial law. "I have a paternal side, and I enjoyed figuring out how to help people. Before I knew it two divorce cases turned into 20, then 20 turned into 100." Williams remained a partner of the five-attorney firm for more than 14 years; then, in early 2004 he launched his own practice, with his staff, including associate Jessica A. Pritchard. The firm works out a beautifully renovated brick colonial cottage in the heart of Doylestown. For many years Williams served on the Doylestown Township Board of Supervisors, until he was not re-elected in 1999. "It was interesting and worthwhile, but I spoke my mind a little too much. I'm not a natural politician." Williams' reputation as an effective divorce attorney never suffered and today he handles 50 cases at a time, many of them involving complex business-valuation or complicated income issues; since he is based in Bucks County, much of his caseload involves couples where one of the two people has a high-paying job in New York or Philadelphia.