The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) has selected Dominic A. Liberatore to receive its 2023 Michael J. Fleming Distinguished Service Award. The award honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the association and the equipment finance industry. Liberatore, who is Deputy General Counsel at DLL, will be formally recognized during a ceremony at the 62nd ELFA Annual Convention in Phoenix, AZ, in October.
“Each year, the Distinguished Service Award recognizes a member who goes above and beyond to advance our mission as an association,” said ELFA President and CEO Ralph Petta. “We are delighted to honor Dominic Liberatore, whose unwavering dedication and leadership in numerous legal and advocacy matters have significantly benefited both our membership and the equipment finance industry at large. I've had the privilege of getting to know Dominic over the years and have had the opportunity to witness first-hand his valuable contributions to both ELFA and our industry. And, along the way, he has demonstrated a sense of passion and humility in all that he does that is to be recognized and emulated.”
“I am humbled and honored to receive this award,” said Liberatore. “Having the opportunity to partner with the very talented ELFA team and also so many wonderful industry friends for so many years has been one of the best parts of my career. ELFA has truly been a driving force for the success of our industry and I am grateful to have been given the chance to work with ELFA. I want to thank Ralph Petta and his terrific team for their incredible hard work and passion for protecting and advancing the needs of our member companies and our industry.”
Liberatore has been an active member of ELFA for more than 25 years. He has shared his expertise on a wide range of legal matters impacting the equipment finance industry. Liberatore is a past Chair of the ELFA Legal Committee and has participated in—and often served leadership roles in—numerous subcommittees. These subcommittees include State Legislative and Regulatory, Capital Markets, E-Commerce, Energy, Equipment Finance Regulatory and Compliance, Equipment Leasing & Finance Magazine and Legal Resources. He is the current Legal Subcommittee Coordinator.
Liberatore is a leading authority on e-leasing and has been a major contributor to the association’s advocacy and outreach efforts on this issue. For the past decade he has supported ELFA’s multi-year initiative to expand the use of e-docs and e-chattel paper in equipment finance, speaking frequently on this topic at the association’s Legal Forum, Annual Convention and webinars. In addition, he has contributed articles on e-leasing to the association’s Equipment Leasing & Finance Magazine and served on the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s E-Signatures Study Subcommittee.
As a strong supporter of ELFA’s federal and state advocacy programs, Liberatore has prepared materials for and attended meetings with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Section 1071 of Dodd-Frank. He also is a regular participant in Capitol Connections, the association’s annual event held in Washington, D.C., to educate members of Congress about, and advocate for, the equipment finance industry.
In addition to his work with ELFA, Liberatore is active with the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation. He currently serves as a member of the Editorial Review Board for the Foundation’s Journal of Equipment Lease Financing and is a donor to the Foundation.
Prior to his current position as Deputy General Counsel for DLL, Liberatore served in a variety of senior in-house legal positions with DLL, IOS Capital, Inc. (the captive finance subsidiary of IKON Office Solutions, Inc.), Copelco Financial Services Group, Inc. and the FDIC. Before going in-house, Liberatore was an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York City and Wolf Block in Philadelphia. He holds a J.D. from Vanderbilt University and a B.A. from the University of Buffalo. He is the past Chair of the Subcommittee on Leasing of the Uniform Commercial Code Committee of the ABA Business Law Section. In 2018, he received ELFA’s 2018 Edward A. Groobert Award for Legal Excellence.
ELFA introduced the Distinguished Service Award in 2004. In 2014 the award was renamed the Michael J. Fleming Distinguished Service Award to honor ELFA's 1979-2006 President. For more information, visit www.elfaonline.org/about/awards.