James R. Bright

Biography

Jim Bright has been practicing law since 1976. He applies his considerable expertise to advising 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 SSSB, 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 Racquet Club.

Education

• Georgetown University Law Center, J.D., 1976
• Princeton University, A.B., 1971

Admissions & Associations

• State of Ohio
• American Bar Association, Member
  
  • Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section
  • General Practice Section
  • Taxation Section
• Ohio State Bar Association, Member
  
  • Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law Section
• Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, Member
  
  • Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law Section
• Estate Planning Council of Cleveland, Member

Professional Involvement

• The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), Fellow

Awards & Honors

• Martindale-Hubbell^® AV Preeminent^®

• Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® since 2006 for Practice Areas:
  • Trusts and Estates

• Selected to the Ohio Super Lawyers® list: 2006-present

• Cleveland’s Top Rated Lawyers

Community Activities

• Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Investment Committee, Chair (2010–present)
• Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Board of Trustees (2004–present)
• Cleveland Social Venture Partners (2004–present)
• Princeton University, Planned Giving Advisory Committee (2002–present)
• Plymouth Church of Shaker Heights, Foundation Committee
• Duchy of Luxembourg, Honorary Consul (1995–present)

Articles & Presentations

• Considerations for Individual Professional Trustees, The Estate Planning Council of Cleveland, January 2020

• Social Security, The CMBA’s Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Law Section’s 44th Annual Estate Planning Institute, 2017

• Social Security, Ohio ACTEC Meeting, 2017