From Steve Leimberg’s Estate Planning Newsletter:
On behalf of everyone at Leimberg Information Services, Inc., we would like to express the profound sadness we felt upon learning of the passing of our co-founder, Steve Leimberg. We extend our deepest sympathies to Steve’s wife Jo-Ann, his family and his large circle of friends and colleagues throughout the world. Steve’s dedication and passion is a testament to what a single person committed to doing good can achieve. We look forward to carrying out the work of LISI in a manner that honors the skill, wisdom, and courage that Steve brought to bear throughout his long and influential career.
Stephan R. Leimberg was a true Renaissance man who wore many hats.
In 1984, he and Bob LeClair, a fellow professor at the American College of Financial services, created the original version of NumberCruncher, based on VisiCalc, the very first spreadsheet ever invented. In 1995 this led to the formation of Leimberg & LeClair, Inc., in Bryn Mawr, PA (now known as Leimberg, LeClair & Lackner, Inc., and currently supporting some 10,000 NumberCruncher users).
In 2000, Steve, his wife, Jo-Ann, and his NumberCruncher partner Bob LeClair formed Leimberg Information Services, Inc. (“LISI”) to provide newsletters and webinars to thousands of legal, tax, and financial planning professionals throughout the country and beyond.
Steve was one of the most prolific authors in the history of the legal and financial planning arena. He was the creator and principal author of the renowned National Underwriter/Leimberg Library Tool and Techniques series, as well as “Tax Planning with Life Insurance” jointly with his long-time friend and colleague, Howard Zaritsky.
A nationally known speaker, Steve addressed virtually every major tax and estate planning conference/meeting at one time or another, including the University of Miami Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning, the NYU Institute on Federal Taxation, the Notre Dame Tax & Estate Planning Institute, the Duke University Planning Conference, the National Association of Estate Planners and Councils, and the AICPA’s National Estate Planning Forum. Steve has also spoken to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. To this day, the Internal Revenue Service continues to subscribe to both NumberCruncher and LISI’s newsletters and webinar services.
Steve was awarded the Excellence in Writing Award of the American Bar Association’s Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section. He was honored as Estate Planner of the Year by the Montgomery County Estate Planning Council and as Distinguished Estate Planner by the Philadelphia Estate Planning Council. He was the recipient of the President’s Cup of the Philadelphia Life Underwriters, a two-time Boris Todorovitch Lecturer, and the First Ben Feldman Lecturer. Steve was named 1998 Edward N. Polisher Lecturer of the Dickinson School of Law and was a featured speaker at the American Bar Association Tax Section Annual Meeting.
Most recently, in October 2022, Steve was honored with Valmark’s first-ever Golden Rule Lifetime Achievement Award: Valmark Golden Rule Lifetime Achievement Award
Steve was also a world-class photographer who captured images while traveling the globe, and published his unique gallery of photographs and digital art online at www.unseenimages.com.
The entire LISI team is deeply saddened by this news. In the years that we spent with Steve, we were touched by his wisdom and kindness. In 2021, Steve initiated a transition of LISI’s ownership and, as a result, the business is fully prepared to operate and thrive for the decades ahead while we honor his legacy.
Many of you have reached out with stories about how you met Steve, how you were impacted by him, and how you will always remember him. We are asking that you share these testimonials and short stories with us so that we can further honor his legacy in a subsequent communication to our community, his wife, and family. Please comment on this newsletter on our website, or send your thoughts directly to Dave Caruso dcaruso@leimbergservices.com and Joel Suen jsuen@leimbergservices.com.
https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/trusts_estates_prof/2022/12/in-memoriam-a-tribute-to-steve-leimberg.html