Cleveland, Ohio – June 2, 2026 –Schneider Bell congratulates partner, Jim Bright on being selected as the Estate Planning Council of Cleveland's recipient of the 2026 Distinguished Estate Planner Award.
"The Distinguished Estate Planner award recognizes Jim's outstanding career of detailed attention to client needs, creativity in problem solving, and collaboration with other advisors to achieve the greatest results. These values have made him a treasured leader in our firm and the Cleveland estate planning community. We are thrilled to have his work honored in this way." – David Lenz, Schneider Bell Managing Partner.
Jim Bright has been practicing law, with the same firm, since 1976. He is a graduate of Princeton University (A.B.) and Georgetown University Law Center (J.D.). He advises individuals and families on estate planning, tax planning (including income and estate, gift, and generation-skipping taxes), and charitable gift planning. He also provides counsel to trustees of private foundations on administration, initial formation, and tax qualification. Prior to the formation of Schneider Bell, he served as President of Spieth Bell McCurdy & Newell Co., L.P.A.
Jim is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and is listed in Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers. He has served on the Board of Directors/Trustees of many charitable institutions in Cleveland, including the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Cleveland Play House. He has also been a member of the Princeton University Planned Giving Advisory Committee since 2002, and he spent years as a partner with Social Venture Partners Cleveland. Additionally, Jim has served as Honorary Consul for the Duchy of Luxembourg since 1995 and is a past President of the Cleveland Raquet Club. His interests outside the practice of law include spending time with family, traveling the world, following the Cleveland Guardians and Ohio State football, and playing tennis (ranked 14th in the United States in the over 75 age group in 2024).
Distinguished Estate Planner-The purpose of this award is to honor a local individual accountant, attorney, financial planner, insurance professional, philanthropic professional, trust officer, or other related professional, for their outstanding contributions to their respective field.The recipient may currently be engaged in practice or recently retired (having practiced in the last year) but must have been involved in their respectivefield of estate planning for a minimum of 15 years and must have been a member of the Cleveland council for at least 5 years in some point of his or her career.The recipient should reflect, in practice, the goals for which our council was organized:
- to further the education of the members of the council and of the public;
- to promote cooperation and to foster a better understanding of the proper relationship among professionals of different disciplines; and
- to provide a better understanding of estate planning as a whole and of the services that various professionals can render to the public
As such, the criteria for the award might include teaching, speaking, authorship, service to the Council, professional, civic or charitable service and creativity or accomplishment in development of services, products, solutions, legislation, etc.