Sarah Ebel

General Counsel

Office of VP and General Counsel
Executive Staff
Pronouns:She/Her/Hers

As the Museum’s General Counsel, Sarah Ebel provides legal and strategic advice on all aspects of the Museum’s operations and programs, including but not limited to repatriation, governance, taxation, intellectual property, labor and employment matters, contracting, insurance, fish and wildlife issues, and scientific research grants and permits.

Sarah started at the Field Museum of Natural History at 2014 as an intern in the General Counsel’s Office and was promoted several times before becoming General Counsel in 2023.

Prior to law school, Sarah was a museum professional. She has a Masters degree in Material Culture Studies from the University of Delaware's Winterthur Program in American Material Culture, where she studied museum administration, decorative arts, and American history. She then worked as the collections manager at a small historic house museum; experiences there piqued her interest in the laws applying to museums and not-for-profits, leading her to change careers. She graduated from DePaul University College of Law in 2014 and is admitted to the Illinois bar.

Sarah currently serves on the steering committee and as faculty for the annual Legal Issues in Museum Administration Conference hosted by the American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education (ALI CLE) and the Smithsonian Institution.