Leo S. Altman (1911-2001)
| Publication year | 2011 |
| Pages | 35 |
2011, July, Pg. 35. Leo S. Altman (1911-2001)
July 2011
Vol. 40, No. 7 [Page 35]
About the Authors
W. David Lytle has been with the law firm of Altman, Keilbach, Lytle, Parlapiano and Ware, P.C. for thirty-seven years. He worked with Leo Altman for twenty-seven years. Lytle was CBA President during 2007-08-lytle@altman-keilbach.com. John J. Keilbach was with the law firm of Altman, Keilbach, Lytle, Parlapiano and Ware, P.C. for almost twenty-nine years. He was a member of the CBA Board of Governors during 1989-90 and was President of the Colorado Lawyers Trust Account Foundation during 2001-02. He currently serves on the Legal Aid Foundation Board.
Chief Judge Dennis Maes of the Tenth Judicial District recently recalled memories of his first meeting with Leo Altman:
When I was a younger lawyer and had started working with Legal Aid, I had a client with a real estate problem that involved unfamiliar issues. I wasn't sure where to begin. I asked around the office and someone said, "Do you know Leo Altman?" I hadn't met Leo at the time, but I was told I should go ahead and call him. So I did. I explained to Leo who I was and inquired whether he would mind if I asked him a question. "What are you doing right now, Dennis?" was his reply. "Come on over." Well, I wasn't doing anything else at that time, so I went to his office. He made me feel very welcome. He helped me frame my questions and gave me direction on where I could find the answers I needed. All the while, he made me feel like I was a bright young attorney. Over the years, I learned that this was a typical Leo Altman response. Any attorney, older or younger, who sought Leo's guidance had a similar experience.
Chief Judge Maes's story about Leo is in keeping with the many other stories that were shared with us after Leo's death in July 2001. It is representative of what we witnessed and personally experienced in the office of Altman Keilbach Lytle Parlapiano and Ware PC.
Personal History
Many attorneys practicing in Colorado today may never have heard of nor known Leo Sidney Altman, even though he practiced in the state for more than sixty-five years. He was born more than a century ago in May 1911, and he devoted the majority of those years practicing estate planning, probate, and real property law in Pueblo and Southern Colorado.
Leo was born in Denver to Simon Altman and Gilsea (Marmorstein) Altman. Shortly after his birth, they moved to Idaho Springs. The family relocated to Pueblo when he and his sister Frieda were children, and this became his lifetime home.
Leo attended college and...
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