Meet the Brilliant Legal Professionals Behind Our Firm

We've been practicing business law for over 44 years, and we've found that our clients truly appreciate the time and effort we put into every aspect of their business. We're here to help you succeed, and that's something we don't take lightly.

Our Team

Robert C. Knuepfer, Jr.
Founder and Managing Partner

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Mr. Knuepfer has more than 45 years of business and legal experience as a former senior partner of Baker & McKenzie LLP, a global law firm, where he specialized in corporate transactions, providing general counsel on a wide range of business matters, including commercial transactions and mergers and acquisitions. He also served as general counsel to a global manufacturer and a global automotive appearance products company. He currently serves on the corporate boards of several private companies, including beauty products, food packaging, consumer beverages, and distributor of proprietary products. His family operates a fourth-generation manufacturing business.

Mr. Knuepfer served as an adjunct professor at Northwestern University for more than 15 years, where he taught business transactions and finance at the Kellogg School of Management and the Pritzker School of Law. He is the author of seven editions of “Winning Legal Strategies for Mergers & Acquisitions,” published by Thomson Reuters, and is the editor of the Illinois Limited Liability Company handbook. He is a frequent lecturer on corporate transactions for federal and state bar associations.

He is a member of the American Bar Association, Federal Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association (past Chair, Corporate & Securities Section Council), Illinois Institute of Business Law (past chair), Chicago Bar Association, and DuPage County Bar Association. He is also a Fellow of the American and Illinois Bar Foundations. He is a member of several professional organizations serving the business community.

Pro Bono and Community Involvement

Active in civic affairs, Mr. Knuepfer has been a trustee or director of the Adler Planetarium, Elmhurst University, Kellogg Business School, Boy Scouts of America, Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, Metropolitan Family Services of Chicago, and The Community House of Hinsdale. He served as the Centennial President of the Rotary Club of Chicago, and as a Global Director of Rotary International. He received the Alumni Medal from Northwestern University, and the Alumni Citation from Denison University.
Mr. Knuepfer is the past president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary. He served as the Honorary Consul General for the Republic of Hungary, and received the Order of Merit with Officers Cross from the Parliament, which is the highest award given by the Hungarian government.

Awards and Rankings

Mr. Knuepfer retired as senior partner of Baker & McKenzie in 2014, and is past Chair of the Firm’s Europe & Middle East Practice Group, and former Managing Partner of the Budapest Office of Baker & McKenzie. Prior to joining Baker & McKenzie, he served as a law clerk to a judge on the federal appellate court in Chicago, and later as a federal prosecutor in the US Attorney’s Office in Chicago. He is annually recognized as a Leading Lawyer by several publications, including recognition as Illinois Corporate Lawyer of the Year.

Education and Admission

Mr. Knuepfer received his JD and MBA degrees from Northwestern University, and a BA degree from Denison University (Phi Beta Kappa), and is admitted to practice before the Illinois Supreme Court, the US District Court (Trial Bar), the US Court of Appeals, and the US Supreme Court. He also earned an M.Div degree from the University of Chicago, and a D. Min degree from the Chicago Theological Seminary.

Mission Statement

Our firm specializes in helping businesses with all their legal needs and helping you in all your business endeavors.