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Longtime probate attorney passes away
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: December 8, 2015
Legal colleagues of Harry Stein describe him as a competent professional capable of handling difficult trusts and estates and probate matters, but those closest to him remember his unwavering dedication to his family.
Stein passed away on Nov. 15 in Sarasota, Florida while in hospice care.
“My grandpa was a very selfless man,” said granddaughter Melanie Berk. “He cared deeply for his family and enjoyed his work. From the time I was very young, I remember how important it was to him to help people.”
Born on July 7, 1928 at Akron City Hospital, Stein lived in Akron most of his life.
A first-generation American, Stein served in the Korean War as a second lieutenant. He worked his way through school at The University of Akron and attended law school at Western Reserve University, where he was a member of the law review.
Stein later became a senior partner at Sacks, Subrin, Penner & Stein Co. In the ‘70s, the firm merged with Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs.
“I first met Harry in the ‘70s when he was working for another firm,” said Robert Briggs, a partner at Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs. “He was handling a collection matter against one of my clients. I remember he pestered the heck out of me until his client got paid.
“I was a huge fan of Harry’s,” said Briggs, chairman emeritus and former chief executive officer of Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs. “He was an extraordinary lawyer, highly ethical and fun to be around. You could not design a better lawyer. He did so much for the legal profession and our firm. He was an extremely bright, collaborative team player who would do anything for anyone in the firm.”
Later Stein became the leader of the trusts and estates practice group at Buckingham.
Briggs said Stein made time for anyone who had questions about trusts and estates or probate matters.
“If you had a problem he was the person who could fix it,” said Briggs. “He would take on the most difficult cases. He had a great relationship with the probate court because they knew his word was his bond and he would not try to ‘pull the wool over your eyes.’”
David Woodburn, the current trusts and estates practice group leader, said Stein mentored him when he was getting started.
“Harry was the head of the practice group when I came here in 1997,” said Woodburn. “I had just passed the bar and started at the firm and he was very helpful to me as I began working in the world of probate and probate litigation.
“He was truly a gentleman,” said Woodburn. “He never said a bad word about anyone. Even in the heat of litigation, he would be calm and polite.”
Woodburn said even after Stein was no longer full time, he provided guidance to attorneys at the firm.
“Harry cared deeply about people and he treated everyone he worked with like family,” said Woodburn. “He was genuinely interested in what was going on in your life and in the office.
“He always had a smile on his face,” said Woodburn. “As a young associate, it was great to have someone like him to go to for assistance.”
Patricia Pacenta, a partner at Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs who handles trusts and estates matters, said Stein was one of the people who interviewed her for the job at the firm in 1980.
Over the years, she worked closely with Stein.
“Harry was very good at what he did,” said Pacenta. “He was on great terms with other lawyers, magistrates and probate Judge Bill Spicer. He was a team player and an understated man. He tooted the horns of everyone but himself.”
Pacenta described Stein as one of her greatest mentors and teachers.
“He cared very much about quality and his door was always open. Whenever there was a thorny problem, be it a client relationship or more a technical issue, he always gave helpful, practical advice,” said Pacenta. “If I had to write a difficult letter, I would ask Harry to review it. He would usually cut it shorter and often tone it down. The letter would always be the better for it.”
She said Stein was very organized and “if you worked on one of his projects, he had a gentle way of reminding you that the work had to get out and he would gently bug the heck out of you to get the work out, and it worked.”
Pacenta said Stein was very proud of his family and his accomplishments. She said he enjoyed golf a great deal and never missed a chance to play.
“I think golf was his therapy,” said Pacenta. “Looking back, I think of Harry as a classic post-war attorney. He was an example of how lawyers practiced collegially, before law became such a competitive profession.”
John Slagter, managing partner at Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, said he was “honored” he had the chance to know Stein.
“He and his partner Ron Penner came to the firm in 1974 as part of a merger,” said Slagter. “Mr. Stein was a mentor to many lawyers over the years and developed a nice client base.
“When I came to the firm in 1997, I remember how gracious, kind and intelligent Mr. Stein was,” said Slagter. “There are some people you meet who you know have a good soul; he was one of them. He treated new people like me very well even though he was so well established.”
In addition to his legal work, Stein gave back to the community, serving on the boards of several organizations, including Jewish Family Service of Akron, Menorah Park and The Salvation Army.
Berk said one of her earliest memories of her grandfather occurred after her immediate family moved to Nashville, Tennessee.
“I was around three at the time,” said Berk. “I had my first dance recital and my grandparents flew from Ohio to attend.
“It is important to me now as an adult looking back because it was such a special memory and a sweet thing for my grandparents to do,” she said. “But part of what was so sweet about it was that they came because even something somewhat silly and trivial and not necessarily so important to me at the time was important to them because I was in it and they wanted to be with family.”
Berk said Stein was a “good listener,” who seldom talked about himself.
“When I was 11 he told me that you don’t learn anything by talking,” said Berk. “He preferred to hear about you.
“I also remember how he would read more than one newspaper from cover to cover each day. He wanted to stay updated on everything that was going on,” said Berk. “He had three sons and my mom was his only daughter. She and my grandpa had a very special relationship.”
Stein was laid to rest on Nov. 16 at Anshe Sfard Cemetery.
He’s survived by his wife Rita, his children Dr. Mark Stein (Judith Stein, Seattle, Washington), Amy Berk (Jim Berk, deceased, Nashville), Rabbi Reuven Stein (Rachel Stein, Atlanta) and Bruce Stein (Susanne Stein, Los Angeles), along with 17 grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and brother Charles Stein.