Emanuel Balams Jr. was born in Mobile, Alabama. He received a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the University of South Alabama in 2003, and earned his Juris Doctorate in 2007 from the University of Alabama School of Law where he was the recipient of the Howell Heflin and the Judge Robert E. Hodnette Jr. Scholarships.

Prior to earning his J.D. and joining Apolinsky & Associates, LLC, Emanuel was a small business owner of a Mobile, Alabama company which built homes in areas of Mississippi and Louisiana affected by Hurricane Katrina.

Emanuel is a member of the State Bar of Georgia and the Atlanta Bar Association.