Phelps Continues Raleigh Expansion With Addition of Business Lawyer Ralph DiLeone
RALEIGH, N.C. — January 21, 2026 — Phelps announces that Ralph DiLeone has joined the firm as a senior partner in its Raleigh office. He amplifies the firm’s capabilities in mergers and acquisitions and corporate law with his successful history of advising closely held and family-owned businesses on ownership changes, complex corporate, transactional, and succession-planning matters using tax efficient structures.
"Ralph is a trusted advisor to business owners and entrepreneurs. He brings boots on the ground and deep business connections to the Raleigh office and will help us expand our corporate services in the region,” said Jonathan Hall, managing partner of Phelps’ Raleigh office. “His decades of experience helping businesses grow and change make him invaluable to our team.”
Ralph has more than 40 years of experience in representing companies in all aspects of business transactions. An accountant by training, he began his legal career in private practice, then served as general counsel for two different companies, where he managed their legal departments before founding his own firm.
He is skilled at buying and selling businesses, corporate succession planning and executing ownership-transition and control-protection agreements, including buy-sell, shareholder, and LLC operating agreements designed to prevent unintended ownership changes and protect long-term business continuity.
Ralph advises clients on structuring transactions and deals to align their business objectives with tax and estate-planning considerations as well as real property and franchising. He also helps clients obtaining financing to meet their goals. He uses his in-house counsel background to help clients handle operational issues that range from contracts to employee relations, risk management and reorganizations. In addition, he counsels individuals and families on wealth preservation and transfer and protecting their assets through the use of wills, trusts and foundations.
This strategic addition in Raleigh continues Phelps’ goal of creating a broader menu of legal services for clients in the Carolinas and Georgia. In June 2024, Phelps added several lawyers who bring experience in commercial litigation, health care, products liability, professional liability, employment law, intellectual property and business transactions.
“I work with businesses of all sizes in many industries. I joined Phelps because its reach and emphasis on collaboration help me serve clients better in the long term,” said Ralph. “My active involvement in the business community aligns naturally with Phelps’ depth of transactional services, allowing me to help clients access the firm’s full range of capabilities as their businesses grow and evolve.”
Ralph is a longtime member of the Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, where he is an active participant of several of the Chamber’s groups, such as the Board of Advisors and the Government Affairs Committee. He is also active with the North Carolina Bar Association and the American Bar Association. He serves on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Autism Society of North Carolina as well as the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Eastern North Carolina.
Phelps’ Raleigh office opened in 2011 and currently serves clients in business, employment, health care, insurance and litigation.
Phelps is an AmLaw-ranked firm whose collaborative strategies help clients thrive. We deliver practical, business-minded solutions to clients with interests in admiralty, business, health care, insurance, labor and employment, and litigation. Our more than 435 lawyers work in tandem to share forward-thinking approaches for businesses in the global economy. Phelps’ reputation is rooted in 150 years of legal excellence, and we reimagine it every day from our 17 locations across the Gulf South, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and the London Market. Learn more at phelps.com.
###
