Firm History & Credentials
Our firm, LeBlanc & Young, was formed in 1995 by Dick LeBlanc, Jay Young and Abby Diggins. We left a large Portland, Maine law firm with a broad-based general practice to establish a small firm that would focus on estate planning, estate and trust administration, and related legal work. Our goals are reflected in the firm’s mission statement, which is still relevant today: “To provide superior services to clients with estate planning and related legal needs, within a working environment that respects and affirms all persons involved.” When we established LeBlanc & Young, we wondered whether we would sit at our desks waiting for the phone to ring. That hasn’t been a problem.
—Jay Young, Founding Member
The firm has prospered and grown since its founding, adding lawyers, professionals and staff to realize our mission. We have dedicated ourselves to providing exvellent legal work in our specialty and building long and satisfying relationships with clients to help them identify and achieve their goals. We navigate the constantly changing tax laws, shifts in family structures and mobile nature of our society to stay current with the skills and tools we need.
We have distinguished ourselves in the legal community by the combination oft he quality of our work and our understanding of the important issues clients face as they plan for the future. LeBlanc & Young has gained much recognition for its expertise and ecellence over the years, being ranked a Band 1 Firm by Chambers and Partners in hits High Net Worth Guide, and a Tier 1 Firm in Trusts and Estates, Best Lawyers/US News. Elizabeth High has been named a Band 1 featured lawyer in Private Wealth Law by Chambers and Partners in all issues of its High Net Worth Guide. Elizabeth High and Jay Young, as well as Dick LeBlanc, now retired, have all been named Lawyer of the Year for Trusts and Estates by Best Lawyers (an honor given to only one lawyer annually in Portland).
The firm includes three Fellows of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC), and one member of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. Although these professional distinctions are important, the recognition of excellence by and on behalf of clients, and by other lawyers, professionals and ultimately by the beneficiaries is the most rewarding part of our practice.
The satisfaction of good, collaborative efforts with our clients that yield carefully crafted and excellent work products is our primary motivation. We remain rooted in the community we serve, our community, where we live, practice and play. That community, and the service we provide to it, is both our history and our future.