Industry Veteran Inserts a Little Magic Into the Industry
Do you believe in magic? When it comes to the legal industry, the equipment finance industry and ELFA, Dominic Liberatore does.
The 2026 recipient of ELFA’s David H. Fenig Distinguished Service in Advocacy Award, Liberatore boasts a long history of exceptional accomplishments and accolades. His day-to-day work as Deputy General Counsel at De Lage Landen Financial Services, Inc. (DLL) impacts countless clients. His industry advocacy work has generated changes that will benefit businesses of all sizes for years to come. But at the top of his list are the relationships he has developed with the people he has led and mentored – and who have mentored him – through his years in the equipment finance industry.
A Magical Place To Be
“Finding the right career and the right industry is magical, and this industry truly is a magical place to be,” the award recipient says. Like most people, he jokes, he didn’t go to college with plans to study or work in equipment leasing and finance. “But what a fabulous place to find! It’s no wonder that once people join, they almost never leave.”
The size, nature and opportunities within the industry are unmatched, according to Liberatore. “It’s staggering,” he says, noting that equipment finance is a $1.3 trillion industry in the United States alone. “And what we do really matters: We’re financing roads, healthcare facilities, equipment for small businesses and much more. You can feel really good about the work.”
The industry also provides an ideal environment for fostering leadership – specifically, Liberatore’s brand of leadership.
Servant Leadership
Liberatore is an ardent believer in – and practitioner of – the servant leadership philosophy. Defined as a style in which the primary goal of the leader is to serve, versus command, it prioritizes the needs, growth and well- being of the team. Servant leaders work to empower employees to reach their highest potential within a collaborative, engaged environment.
“When I started practicing law in 1987, leadership was still driven from the top down,” Liberatore reflects. “Today, people want to learn, be inspired and challenged, be involved. They don’t want to be told to jump.” The servant leadership style works for young professionals – and for Liberatore.
How he implements that philosophy is by jumping in with both feet. “I’m not at all afraid of getting my hands dirty.” For him, it involves finding a middle ground. “There’s a risk of micromanaging by stepping in too much, too often, versus not being available enough.” Learning to provide employees room to grow while knowing when to step in to help is an art, he says.
“As in parenting, as an effective leader, you want to try to avoid hovering and helicoptering,” he says. “You need to let people try things and have their own successes, yet experience some struggles and problems.” And just as it’s key to know when to let your child explore, and when to jump in and pull their hand from the hot stove, a servant leader needs to know when to bite their tongue, and when to step in and prevent catastrophe.
In practical terms, that sometimes means clearing roadblocks and letting people do their work – while staying close enough to jump in if needed. It also means fostering an environment where questions are encouraged. “I always tell people to ask as often and as many times as they want,” he stresses. “I want to know when someone needs information, and I want to know when there’s a real problem I can address while it’s still minor.”
The Role of Mentors and Mentees
Working in this manner results in strong mentor/mentee relationships and roles, says Liberatore. “Serving as a mentor takes more time, thought and energy than you might think,” he explains, “but the results are more than worth it.” He cites the ability to influence a career and see a mentee shine as some of the most gratifying work of his career. “If you open a door, provide some needed tips, answer a question and then see what people can do, it just makes you feel great.”
Dominic with Lisa Flesicher, a mentor and friend; and Molly Simon, a mentee, friend and now part of Dominic’s legal team.
The career veteran especially values the chance to work with people he has mentored at other companies. “When someone who’s been a friend and mentee becomes part of my team, it’s the best thing,” he exudes. “It’s leadership and mentoring coming full circle.”
For Liberatore, mentoring is also an essential part of paying back. “I’m in the grateful part of my career,” he states. “The fact I get to do what I do for a living is phenomenal, and that I have the opportunity to help others rise up and succeed in this industry is more than I could hope for.”
An Industry Like No Other
Liberatore points to the longevity aspect of the equipment finance industry as key to his success, his leadership acumen and the immense enjoyment he receives from his work. As people tend to stay in the industry for the long haul, he reflects, it provides ongoing opportunities to develop relationships as careers ebb and flow. “Over time, everyone has the ability to be a mentor and a mentee, to help a colleague and to develop friendships.”
No matter what ELFA function he attends – large or small, formal or informal – those friendships and camaraderie remain central to the organization and to the industry's uniqueness. “It always feels like you are with old friends and colleagues, not competitors,” he comments.
Tips for a Lifetime of Fulfillment
As honored as he is by his award, Liberatore remains truly honored to work with professionals developing their careers in the equipment finance industry. Regardless of area of expertise or specialty, he offers four key tips:
- Find mentors. Ask questions and soak up every piece of knowledge you can.
- Spend time giving back. Mentorship is omnipresent in our industry. You don’t need to wait until you’ve amassed 30 years of experience. Help others when you can, and they’ll help you.
- Take advantage of education opportunities. Attend ELFA events, roundtables and workshops. Take the Certified Lease & Finance Professional (CLEP) course. Study areas in which you have an interest and with which you’re unfamiliar. It will pay off.
- Learn – continuously. My version of “fake it til you make it” is “learn it til you make it.” Learn your business as well as you can, every way you can. There are no shortcuts.
Conclusion
The equipment finance industry is different, concludes Liberatore, with a collegial atmosphere, a tremendous reservoir of careers and livelihoods, and opportunities to learn and grow. “I’m super-proud of what we have. It really is a magical place to be.”
Celebrating 30 Years With the Industry and ELFA
Dominic Liberatore’s work as an attorney and within ELFA spans three decades. He is Deputy General Counsel at De Lage Landen Financial Services, Inc. (DLL), a global provider of leasing and business finance solutions. A resident of Malvern, Pennsylvania, his work focuses on leasing and asset-based lending. He has 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. Prior to going in-house, he was an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York City, and Wolf Block in Philadelphia.
Currently the ELFA Legal Subcommittee Coordinator, Liberatore participates regularly in ELFA’s Capitol Connections. He is the lead editor for the Leasing Law column of ELFA’s Equipment Leasing & Finance Magazine, and is a past chair of the ELFA Legal Committee. In addition, he has participated, and often held leadership roles, in numerous committees, including the E-Commerce Subcommittee, State Legislative & Regulatory Subcommittee, Capital Markets Subcommittee, Legal Resources Subcommittee, Energy Subcommittee, and Federal Equipment Finance Compliance and Regulatory Subcommittee.
He is also the recipient of ELFA’s Edward A. Groobert Award for legal excellence (2018) and the Michael J. Fleming Distinguished Service Award (2023).
A recognized authority on e-leasing, Liberatore has been a major contributor to ELFA’s advocacy work on this issue. For the past decade, he has supported ELFA’s initiative to expand the use of e-docs and e-chattel paper in equipment finance, speaking and writing frequently on the topic. He has served on the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s E-Signatures Study Subcommittee.
His work extends beyond ELFA to support a wide range of industry issues. He has had regulatory engagement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Section 1071 of Dodd-Frank, and was selected as an industry observer by the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) relating to amendments made to the Uniform Commercial Code that are critical to the equipment finance industry. More recently, the ULC selected him as an industry observer to draft a uniform state disclosure act. In addition, he served as chair of the Subcommittee on Leasing of the Uniform Commercial Code Committee of the American Bar Association’s business law section.
Liberatore holds a Juris Doctor degree from Vanderbilt University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Buffalo.
