Sheldon M. (Mike) Young

Sheldon M. (Mike) Young, who passed away in 2009 at age 83, was a talented employee benefits lawyer who wrote extensively about employee benefit plans. Mike was inducted into the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel (the “College”) in 2000 as a Charter Fellow.

He was a member of the Ohio State University class of 1951. He also attended Case Western Reserve School of Law.

Mike became an expert in employee benefits law and was associated with Arter & Hadden (ceased operation in 2003) in Cleveland as Counsel. He also was Of Counsel to Walter Haverfield LLP. He practiced law until days before his death.

A dedicated teacher and writer, Mike taught pension law at several universities, including Case Western Reserve University, and wrote and revised the seven-volume treatise, Pension and Profit-sharing Plans, published by M. Bender 1977-1993. He served on the Employee Benefits Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation.

In an article written in 2008, Mike brought depth of his knowledge and research on benefits law and added his voice to the debate on universal health care. He noted: “This sparked my memory of debates in Congress when Social Security was being considered…The issues raised 73 years ago when passage of Social Security was being debated are issues that I think should be considered today in the debate over whether a national health-care plan should require mandatory or voluntary entrance.” https://www.dispatch.com/story/opinion/editorials/2008/03/29/history-can-help-guide-debate/23533634007/

College Fellow Jim Singer remembered Mike as an enthusiastic story teller with a significant outside interest in Spanish Jewish history, who told fascinating stories about how the Jewish people thrived centuries ago in Spain. Some of Mike’s ancestors were Sephardic Jews in Toledo, Spain until they were expelled from Spain in 1492. His years of interest and research resulted in the publication of his book Toledoth-City of Generations.

An impressive scholar and teacher, Mike helped inform and educate the employee benefits bar.

Photo Source: The Decade Book, American College of Employee Benefits Counsel 2000-2010