Profile Summary
About Noel Hillman at a glance
Noel Hillman is a criminal defense and white collar attorney based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, practicing at FBT Gibbons LLP. They have 40+ years of legal experience, licensed to practice since 1986. Admitted to practice in New Jersey, New Jersey State Bar Association (1986), New York, New York State Bar Association (1990), and Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Bar Association (2024). Educated at Duke University (LL.M., 2022) and New York University (LL.M., 1999). Recognitions include Best Lawyers in America — Criminal Defense: White-Collar (2026), Best Lawyers in America — Awards: (2026), and Best Lawyers in America — William J. Brennan, Jr. Award, Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey (2026). Serands clients in Philadelphia, PA and the surrounding metropolitan area.
Want to Get Service From This Attorney?
Sign up free and choose one of the two methods below.
Have a legal question? Sign up free, submit it through the Ask the Attorney module and receive a focused answer from a specialist.
- Free to ask a question
- Answers from specialist attorneys
- Optional private / anonymous question
Request an online video meeting or an in-person consultation at the attorney's office. Pick a time that works for you and share the details securely.
- Online video meeting
- In-person at the attorney's office
- Secure messaging and payment
About
- The Hon. Noel L. Hillman (Ret.) leads the Gibbons Alternative Dispute Resolution practice, a burgeoning focus area of the firm’s Business & Commercial Litigation Group
- His nearly two decades-long service as a United States District Judge for the District of New Jersey lends invaluable perspective and insight to clients as they move through the dispute resolution process
- Judge Hillman has experience in the areas of employment law, corporate law, constitutional law, education law, customs law, anti-money laundering, anticorruption, trade regulation, defamation, antitrust law, trade secrets, patents, copyright, and trademark law
- Judge Hillman also provides counsel to the firm’s White Collar & Investigations Group
- Judge Hillman was appointed in 2006 by President George W. Bush, after unanimous confirmation by the U.S
- Senate (98-0) and receiving the ABA’s highest ranking (“unanimously well-qualified”)
- He joined the bench after serving in several leadership roles in the U.S
- Department of Justice (DOJ) over 14 years, both in Washington, DC and New Jersey
- These included, with Main Justice in Washington, DC: Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division
- and Chief of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section
- and with the U.S
- Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey: Acting Attorney-in-Charge of the Camden Office
- Customs Crimes Coordinator
- and Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division in Newark, New Jersey
- During his time at Main Justice, he oversaw the DOJ’s anti-corruption, election crimes, and campaign finance prosecutions nationwide, serving as lead counsel, co-lead counsel, or acting U.S
- Attorney in some of the DOJ’s most important, impactful, and sensitive national security, bribery, and campaign finance prosecutions
- As a member of the Senior Executive Service and one of the DOJ’s most senior career prosecutors, he also served in several important leadership and policy roles in the executive branch, including: member of the Advisory Board of the Election Assistance Commission
- Counsel to the Integrity Committee of the President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency, overseeing the inspector general community
- and member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Criminal Undercover Operations Review Committee, acting, along with other Criminal Division section chiefs, to ensure the FBI’s adherence to the Constitution and DOJ internal guidelines in its most sensitive criminal investigations
- In addition to presiding over nearly 100 jury and bench trials to verdict in almost two decades as a United States District Judge, his committee assignments included chairing the Third Circuit Model Civil Jury Instructions Committee and the District of New Jersey’s Criminal Law Committee and serving on the Third Circuit Committee on Re-Entry Courts and the Jury Trial Subgroup of the Administrative Office of the U.S
- Courts’ COVID-19 National Task Force
- Judge Hillman has significant international experience in criminal law as well, especially as an anti-corruption authority
- He served as a State Department delegate to the Global Forums, anti-corruption conferences in Korea and Brazil, and was a member of both the U.S. negotiation team for the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) in Austria and a UNCAC implementation team in Italy
- He also participated in Justice Department training missions to Ukraine, regarding non-bank money laundering, and Serbia, concerning corporate criminal liability
- assisted the Council of Europe on member-state compliance with the Group of States Against Corruption treaty, conducting compliance reviews of Ireland and Turkey
- and provided technical assistance on judicial integrity to public and educational entities in South and Central America
- He has taught as an adjunct professor at several leading law schools and lectured and published on a diverse array of subject matters, including sentencing law and policy, artificial intelligence, trial advocacy, public corruption, campaign finance, money laundering, bank fraud, securities fraud, customs law, international trade, export and arms control, copyright, music publishing, antitrust, and related topics
Practice Areas Explained
Noel Hillman's Areas of Practice
Each practice area below reflects the types of cases Noel Hillman handles, with a brief overview of what that area of law covers.
A criminal defense attorney protects your rights from arrest through trial. Find experienced lawyers handling DUI, drug, federal, theft, and violent-crime charges.
Noel Hillman is one of 214,270 criminal defense attorneys indexed nationally. Browse criminal defense attorneys in Pennsylvania →
Noel Hillman is one of 20,025 white collar attorneys indexed nationally. Browse white collar attorneys in Pennsylvania →
Jurisdictional Context
Why local counsel matters in Pennsylvania
Practicing law in Pennsylvania. Legal matters in Pennsylvania are governed by state-specific rules of civil and criminal procedure, statutes of limitations, and substantive law. Cases originating in Philadelphia are typically filed in the local municipal court or the appropriate Pennsylvania state district court, depending on subject matter and amount in controversy. An attorney licensed in Pennsylvania brings working knowledge of local procedural deadlines, judicial practices in this andnue, and the substantive law that applies to cases brought here. Out-of-state attorneys generally cannot represent clients in Pennsylvania courts without local counsel or pro hac vice admission.
Looking for additional Pennsylvania attorneys? Browse all attorneys in Philadelphia or all attorneys in Pennsylvania.
Frequently Asked
Common questions about Noel Hillman
Where is Noel Hillman's law office located?
What practice areas does Noel Hillman handle?
How long has Noel Hillman practiced law?
Where did Noel Hillman go to law school?
How can I contact Noel Hillman for a consultation?
What awards or recognition has Noel Hillman received?
Practice Areas
Education
Awards
Bar Admissions
Reviews
No reviews yet.