Noel Elfant
Of Counsel
Corporate
Noel Elfant is Of Counsel in the Corporate Group. He focuses on advising clients regarding complex commercial contracts, M&A transactions, governance and compliance issues, general corporate law matters, and providing other general counsel services.
As a results-driven legal advisor, Noel has a passion for helping businesses achieve their goals and objectives. He is a trusted business partner with his clients, providing holistic and practical legal advice to boards of directors and all levels of management.
Noel presently serves on the Board of Directors of the ACLU of Illinois and as an emeritus, former Board member, and former President of the Board of The Center for Enriched Living, a Riverwoods, Illinois organization that serves people with developmental disabilities.
Noel has decades of experience serving as general counsel for a variety of businesses. He served as the first General Counsel and Chief Compliance Offer of Zebra Technologies Corporation, a publicly-held, multi-national manufacturer and marketer of bar code, RFID and scanning technologies, and as the General Counsel for the North American operations of DeLaval Inc., a manufacturer of dairy farm equipment and part of the privately-held, multi-national Tetra Laval Group. Noel is the founder and principal attorney at General Counsel Practice LLC, serving the legal needs of C-Suite executives and small-to-medium size businesses.
Noel earned his J.D. from Northwestern University and his B.A. from UCLA. Additionally, he has completed the Executive Program at Northwestern University’s Kellogg Management Institute. He lives with his wife, Susan, in Northbrook. They enjoy tennis, live theater and traveling. They have three grown children and a Labrador retriever.
Additional Information
Education & Admissions
Education
- Kellogg Management Institute, Executive Program
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, J.D.
- University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), B.A
Bar Admissions
- Illinois
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
Memberships
- North Shore Compliance Officers Roundtable
- North Shore General Counsel Association
- CEO Roundtable
- THE Roundtable
- Private Directors Association
- Association for Corporate Growth
Q&A
What’s your favorite quote?
“You rarely remember who you helped, but you always remember who helped you. So, if you want to be remembered, be a helper.”What’s the biggest mistake attorneys can make?
Not asking enough questions to understand the context of the matter and the client’s ultimate objective before rushing to do the work.What is something that makes you happy?
Being with my wife, especially while in the city or on vacation.
“Noel is quick, smart, and action-oriented with a commercial bent. He cuts to the essence of complex matters quickly and gets people to align on the right course of action without pulling rank. He has gravitas without ego.”