Leonard Stern managed his father’s grocery store as he attended Cleveland Law School. He graduated in 1926 and went into private practice before serving as a bailiff for the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. He moved to Columbus in 1939 and was appointed corporate counsel in the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, then later served as executive secretary to the Ohio Board of Public Works from 1940-1946. He was appointed Judge to the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas in 1965, and appointed Judge to the Ohio 10th District Court of Appeals in 1969. He was appointed a Justice to the Ohio Supreme Court in 1970, serving until 1977 when Ohio’s 70-year old age limit for judges required his retirement. Stern served as the first Disciplinary Counsel to the Ohio Supreme Court from 1977-1982 and consultant to the Disciplinary Counsel from 1982-1984. He was a visiting Judge to the Ohio 10th District Court of Appeals in 1985.