Noëlle Lenoir is a lawyer, former judge and politician, with expertise in ethics, professional conduct and European affairs.
A graduate of the Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris, she earned her law degree from the Université de Paris and began her career at the French Senate in 1972, as an administrator on the Law Committee, then joined the CNIL in 1982, the French Data Protection Authority, as the Chief Legal Officer. Noëlle Lenoir joined the Conseil d’État (France’s highest administrative court) in 1984 as a maître de requêtes (master of petitions) where she carried out the roles of Government Commissioner (now known as Public Rapporteur). She then became head of the French Minister of Justice’s office, before being appointed by the Prime Minister to carry out an investigation into bioethics law. Her report was used as the basis for drawing up the first law on bioethics in France.
The first woman and the youngest person ever to be appointed to France’s Constitutional Council (1992 to 2001), she also chaired UNESCO’s International Bioethics Committee from 1991 to 1998 and was Chairwoman of the European Bioethics Group on Science and New Technology at the European Commission (1994 to 2001).
She later taught law at Columbia University in New York and University College London, before returning to France in 2002 when she was appointed Minister for European Affairs. In this position, she notably took part in negotiations with accession countries in Central and Western Europe to prepare their integration into the European Union and was tasked with monitoring the drafting of the constitutional treaty.
Currently practising as a lawyer at the Paris bar, in 2020, after working for US law firms, she set up her own firm (specialising in digital and data protection law, internal and international investigations, compliance and anti-corruption, European law, public and constitutional law, criminal law and arbitration). She also served as Chief Ethics Officer of France’s National Assembly from 2012 to 2014, reviewing statements of interest submitted by members and drafting initial recommendations based on the members’ code of conduct.
Since then, she has chaired the Ethics Committee at Radio France and the Science and Ethics Committee for the Parcoursup platform, further expanding her expertise relating to social issues.
Noëlle Lenoir has contributed many articles to law journals and is the author of several books and numerous reports. She has hosted programmes and moderated debates notably on BFM Business and France 24, and has been a columnist for France Culture and a regular columnist and contributor to L’Express and La Tribune. She has taught at a range of prestigious schools and universities. She is Chairman of the “Cercle des Européens”, a forum for decision-makers to engage in dialogue with European leaders.
Noëlle Lenoir is also the Vice-Chairwoman of ICC France and the Chairwoman of the Legal Commission of “Grand Paris/Ile de France”, responsible for formulating proposals on the region’s appeal as a legal centre, a member of the French Academy of Technologies and a HEC Business School Director. She also chairs the Law and Public Debate Committee, whose role is to comment on current developments from a legal perspective.