Peter Birnbaum is celebrating 25 years as president and chief executive officer of Chicago-based Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Fund, Inc.
Under Birnbaum’s leadership, the company has developed into a lawyer service organization with annual revenues in excess of $90 million.
Birnbaum began his career at ATG as a law clerk in 1981 while a first-year student at the Chicago-Kent College of Law. He then advanced to positions of staff attorney, vice president and counsel.
During his 25 years at ATG, Birnbaum has received a number of awards, including the Justice John Paul Stevens Award for those who exemplify the Justice’s commitment to integrity and public service in the practice of law. He has also received the Illinois Bar Foundation Distinguished Award for Excellence, the Chicago Bar Association Vanguard Award for promoting diversity in the profession and the Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Lend A Hand Foundation “Making a Difference” award.
He was named one of Chicago-Kent College of Law’s 125 Alumni of Distinction. In 2011, Birnbaum was inducted as a Laureate in the Academy of Illinois Lawyers, the highest honor bestowed by the Illinois State Bar Association.
In January of 2004, Birnbaum was appointed as a judge to the seven-member Illinois Court of Claims. The curt hears cases en banc, and rules on claims against the state. He was appointed chief justice in 2015 and reappointed in 2016 by Gov. Bruce Rauner. Birnbaum is also a past president of the allumni board and current board of overseers member of the Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Birnbaum holds or has held leadership positions on several corporate and philanthropic boards. He served as president of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago. He and his wife Juliet have been a Big Brother and Big Sister for the past eighteen years. Birnbaum is currently President of the Jesse White Foundation. He led the effort to build the Jesse White Community Center, opened in the fall of 2014. He was also elected to the Board of the American Land Title Association in 2009 and currently serves as Treasurer.
