Partner · Business law
Eleanor Hale
Eleanor advises owners of Chicago companies on forming the business, the agreements it runs on, and selling it when the time comes. She believes most business disputes are drafting problems that arrived late.
How Eleanor works
Owners first, documents second
Eleanor’s clients are usually the people who started the business: two friends who opened a design studio, a family that has run a supply company for two generations, a founder bringing in a first investor. She starts every matter by asking how the owners actually make decisions, then writes agreements that match.
She co-founded Hale & Whitcomb to work directly with owners instead of through layers of staff. You will have her direct line, a written scope and fee before work starts, and a summary in plain English of every major clause she drafts.
When a matter needs another practice, she brings in her colleagues: Thomas Whitcomb for the building the business buys or leases, Danielle Okafor for the owner’s succession and estate plan.
Focus
- Formation and owner agreementsOperating agreements for founders who started as friends, and shareholder agreements for family companies.
- ContractsCustomer and supplier terms for growing agencies, distributors and small manufacturers.
- Selling or buying a businessAsset sales to a competitor, a key employee or the next generation, from letter of intent to closing.
Credentials
Admissions and education
- Bar
- Illinois. ARDC registration shown here
- Courts
- Court admissions shown here
- Education
- Law school and year shown here
- Languages
- English
On a real firm’s site, each attorney’s admissions are listed exactly as registered.
In her words
“The best agreement is one you never need to reread, because everyone already knows what it says.”
Eleanor Hale, on why she writes summaries for every contract.
Next step
Meet Eleanor about your business.
Choose “Business law” on the enquiry form and mention Eleanor. After the conflict check, her assistant offers you two or three times for a first consultation.