Elisa D. Garcia C. is an accomplished corporate executive and attorney with over 30 years of experience advising management and boards of directors on legal, business and government relations matters. Through her broad based experience in all aspects of international business and corporate law, Ms. Garcia has guided her clients through a myriad of business and legal issues, government investigations, international acquisitions and investments, debt refinancings, domestic and international labor issues and legislative and regulatory attacks.  She is recognized for her well-grounded yet creative approach to problem solving.

Ms. Garcia has held general counsel and senior executive positions with Macy’s, Office Depot, Domino’s Pizza and Philip Morris International.  She also has worked as counsel for GAF Corp., a chemical and roofing manufacturer, and began her legal career with the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher in New York City.  Ms. Garcia has particular expertise in international business transactions, corporate governance, securities laws and compliance. Prior to her career as an attorney, Ms. Garcia was an Energy Analyst working in-country with developing country governments and the U.S. Agency for International Development. 

Since 2016, Ms. Garcia has served as the Chief Legal Officer of Macy’s, Inc. and as a member of Macy’s Enterprise Committee, which sets the overall strategic direction for the company. Macy’s is a premier omni-channel retailer with sales of over $25 billion. From 2007 to 2016, Ms. Garcia has served as a trusted advisor to the Board and senior management of Office Depot, Inc., a $17 billion dollar multinational retail, B-to-B and E-Commerce company. Ms. Garcia served as Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary, and had global responsibility for global legal, compliance and government relations matters. She also had responsibility for leading Internal Audit and Investor Relations for several years. Ms. Garcia led the negotiation and legal strategy for the merger of Office Depot with OfficeMax, a combination with significant antitrust implications, and served on the Steering Committee for the integration of the $17 billion combined business.   Ms. Garcia also led the attempted merger of Office Depot with Staples, Inc.                                     

Ms. Garcia serves on the Board of Directors and Nominating and Governance Committee of Dollarama, Inc., the leading operator of dollar stores in Canada with sales of over $3 billion and over 1,000 stores.   Ms. Garcia also serves on the Board of the Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Profession, a non-profit organization supporting research and scholarship to improve the entrance and retention of minorities, women and LGBT in the legal profession.

Ms. Garcia  is a graduate of St. John’s University School of Law in New York (1985), where she was an Editor of the Law Review. She also received a joint BA/MS in Political Science and Management and Policy Sciences from W. Averell Harriman College, State University of New York at Stony Brook (1980).  Ms. Garcia is a member of the New York and Michigan Bars.