Mr. Filkin has nearly twenty years of legal experience, and as such, serves as Senior Counsel in the Commercial Practice Group. His primary areas of practice are business & corporate law, mergers & acquisitions, and family office planning.
Mr. Filkin previously served as the Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Duchossois Industries, Inc., a multi-billion dollar privately-held company with ownership interests in consumer products, access controls, entertainment, and technology sectors. In addition to overseeing all of the legal affairs of the companies, he was a member of the four-person executive team where he advised on strategy, leadership development, human resources and risk management. He negotiated and consulted regarding numerous business transactions, in excess of nearly one billion dollars in the aggregate. Mr. Filkin also advised the Duchossois family office on transactional, aviation and watercraft matters.
Mr. Filkin has served on the board of directors of a number of companies, including AMX, SmartSignal, Kentucky Motor Speedway and Interlink Technologies. In addition, he was a partner with Duchossois Technology Partners, a one hundred million dollar venture capital fund, focusing on early stage technology-based companies in the semiconductor, network appliance and software industries. As Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Arlington Park Racecourse in the late 1990’s, he helped secure legislative changes allowing Illinois' premier thoroughbred racing facility to reopen and advised on the subsequent merger with Churchill Downs.
Mr. Filkin's experience includes serving as a partner with a highly regarded, mid-size Chicago-based law firm. As a member of the Corporate Practice Group, he concentrated on mergers and acquisitions, banking and real estate. He also served as outside general counsel to various companies, including an Illinois riverboat gaming company and a privately-held automotive equipment manufacturer.
Mr. Filkin earned his Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Illinois College of Law and a Bachelor of Sciences in Finance Degree from the College of Commerce of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.