Laura Weintraub Beck Named Cummings & Lockwood’s First Female Chairman and Managing Director Succeeding Jonathan B. Mills
December 15, 2021
Cummings & Lockwood has named Laura Weintraub Beck the firm’s Chairman and Managing Director, succeeding Jonathan B. Mills, who served the firm in that capacity for 19 years. Mr. Mills was the youngest and longest tenured person to hold that position in the firm’s 113 year history.
Ms. Beck will be the first woman ever to assume the role of Chairman of Cummings & Lockwood.
After nearly two decades of service, Mr. Mills will be stepping down from his role as Chairman, effective January 1, 2022. He will continue to be a partner with an active practice serving private clients as well as all key players in the commercial real estate industry.
As Chairman, Mr. Mills successfully led the firm through several major challenges, including a corporate restructuring in 2003, the great financial crisis of 2007-2008, and the global pandemic in 2020-2021. He also led in the transition of firm management to the next generation, including bringing more women into leadership positions.
“Jon Mills has done a masterful job at leading Cummings & Lockwood through both good times and bad, consistently demonstrating strength, courage and grace under pressure, and governing with a steady hand and positive outlook that has enabled the firm to continue to flourish and prosper, even under exceptionally difficult circumstances. In addition to carrying on the firm’s rich traditions and values, Jon has always exhibited a genuine caring, respect and appreciation for our attorneys and staff, providing them with the support they needed to help them maximize their full potential,” noted Laura Beck. “I, personally am deeply grateful for Jon’s seasoned advice, generosity and support as I transition into the role of Chairman and Managing Director. ”
“I am very proud of Cummings & Lockwood’s longstanding success and reputation for excellence,” noted Mr. Mills, “I am even more excited that we will have a superbly talented new Chairman and Managing Director in Laura Beck, who will lead the firm into the next decade and beyond.”
A Connecticut native, Ms. Beck received her J.D. from Columbia Law School, her Master’s degree in Public Policy (M.P.P) from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and her B.A. from Trinity College. Prior to attending law school, she worked for the United States Senate Judiciary Committee drafting reports and legislation relating to crime and drug policies.
Ms. Beck joined Cummings & Lockwood in 2002 and has held many leadership positions at the firm, including Chairman of the Private Clients Group and Vice Chairman of Cummings Lockwood. Earlier in her career, she served as Director of Client Communications for the Private Clients Group, oversaw attorney training, and was the recipient of The Annual Partnership Award in 2019 which is given to that Partner who has consistently exemplified, through firm-wide initiatives, the highest attributes of partnership for the year.
Based in the firm’s Greenwich office, Ms. Beck focuses her law practice on estate planning, including business succession planning and planning for real estate holdings, estate administration, probate litigation and trust administration. She is admitted to practice law in Connecticut and New York, and writes and speaks extensively on a broad range of estate and tax planning topics.
She serves on the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Bar Association’s Estates & Probate Section, and is a member of the New York Bar Association, Fairfield County Bar Association and Greenwich Bar Association.
Ms. Beck is a Fellow with The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and has been recognized as a “notable practitioner” by Chambers High Net Worth Guide from 2019 to the present. She has also been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America from 2018 to the present, was recognized as “Lawyer of the Year” in Tax Law in the Stamford Metro Area by Best Lawyers for 2022, and has been listed among Super Lawyers from 2013 to the present.
She is a Professional Advisory Council Member of the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Director and former Chairman of the Board of the Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut; Director of Liberation Programs; Chair Emeritus of the Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Professional Advisors Council; Advisory Board Member of the Greenwich Tree Conservancy; Foundation Board Member of Truglia Thumbelina Fund; and a former Member of the New Canaan Country School’s Alumni Council.
Ms. Beck lives in Fairfield, Connecticut, with her husband, Scott, and their two children.