Still relatively early in his career, Keith Roberts has already emerged as one of New Jersey's leading health-care attorneys, particularly in litigation matters. Energetic, well prepared and persistent ("The man never stops," says a rival), Roberts, now 43, has become a key player representing New Jersey's physicians and medical groups in their highly regulated profession. He recently prevailed for a physician in a $20 million, four-year billing dispute with a major insurer, which tried to smear Roberts' client both in the courts and in the media. He joined the renowned Roseland-based firm Brach Eichler in 2011 -- recruited as a partner -- after several years running his own boutique and as a partner with one of the leading trial attorneys in the region. For Roberts, a Cliffside Park native who attended Manhattan College and New York Law School, it has been a remarkable ascent: He recognized early the importance of low-profile arbitration cases of Personal Injury Protection claims against insurance companies following car accidents. Roberts brought a rare zeal to a field that many attorneys regarded as unimportant. In fact, in the late 1990s Roberts' cases alone represented nearly 5% of all of New Jersey's 20,000 so-called "PIP Arb" cases - an eye-popping share for a single attorney. That record earned the respect of many of the region's physicians, whose payments had been held up by denials of insurance claims. Today Roberts is reviewing contracts and structuring business entities for many physicians and facilities, all of which he aggressively represents in arbitration cases. He also represents them in hearings before the State Board of Medical Examiners. Further, Roberts is the lone attorney on the New Jersey Insurance Commission's 12-member technical advisory committee (PIPTAC). Away from the office Roberts enjoys "a little golf," photography and is an enthusiast of Bordeaux vintages. He and his wife, Carol, have two young children; they live in Old Tappan.