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With full hearts, Hauptman Ham, LLP and the Hauptman family bid a final farewell to Benjamin J. Hauptman, co-founding partner of the firm, who passed away in December 2025. On May 3, 2026, those who loved and admired him gathered one last time at Joe Theismann’s Restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia — a final celebration of a life that left an indelible mark on everyone it touched. An earlier memorial had been held in Japan, a fitting tribute to a man who truly belonged to the world.

A Life That Began Against the Odds

Ben Hauptman was born on January 27, 1955, in Washington Heights, New York, the son of Holocaust survivors Fred and Beatrice Hauptman. His very existence was, as his family said, something of a miracle — a life that arose from unimaginable adversity, and one that repaid that gift a thousandfold. Evil tried to erase his family. Instead, it gave rise to something extraordinary.

Builder of a Firm, and of People

He earned his engineering degree from MIT and went on to become a distinguished patent attorney, combining rare technical depth with an instinct for people and possibility. He founded Hauptman Ham, LLP not merely to practice law, but to open doors — sponsoring visas, building careers, and extending opportunity to those willing to work for it. Over nearly four decades, he employed hundreds of people and changed the course of countless lives. His son, Josh Hauptman, remembered it simply: his father believed in giving people a chance, and he always made sure there was a little skin in the game.

Always Looking Forward

His partner of 19 years, Yoon Ham, remembered Ben as a brilliant strategist, professor, and pilot — a man who navigated the complexities of business with the same precision he brought to his beloved aviation. He earned his pilot’s license as a teenager, logged millions of air miles, and never stopped planning his next great adventure.

He ran three marathons — the Marine Corps, Tokyo, and New York City. He won the firm’s chili cook-off with the quiet confidence of someone who had planned the victory well in advance. He filled passport after passport and returned from every journey with new energy and new ideas. He was never reminiscing. It was always, as Josh recalled, “What’s next? Where are we going?”

Goodbye to a Force of Nature

The memorial was filled with stories — of Land Rover rides to Great Falls, fishing trips, flights across continents, and the patent practice course — each one a window into a man who led by doing and taught by example. Ben embodied the belief that you give a man a fish and you feed him for a day but teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. He lived that philosophy in every dimension of his work. He sponsored dozens of visas, giving people not just a job but a foothold in a new life. He mentored attorneys and professionals who went on to build careers of their own. He taught his patent practice course with the rigor of a professor and the patience of someone who genuinely wanted others to succeed. He employed hundreds of people over the years, and in each case his instinct was never to hand anything over freely, but to invest in people’s capacity to earn it. As Ariel recalled, there were no free handouts — only opportunity, extended to those willing to meet it.

Ben is survived by his wife, Kana; his children, Josh Hauptman and Ariel Hauptman; his grandchildren Adele, Akiva, Olivia, and Ethan; and by every person whose life grew larger for having known him.

Carpe Diem

If there was a phrase that defined Benjamin Hauptman, it was Carpe Diem — seize the day. It was not a slogan for him. It was a way of life. He said it to his children, he modeled it in everything he did, and those who knew him well recognized it in the way he approached every morning: with energy, curiosity, and an unwillingness to leave anything on the table. Three marathons. Millions of air miles. A pilot’s license earned as a teenager. Chili cook-offs planned like patent filings. Adventures mapped out to Alaska, Japan, and beyond. He did not wait for the right moment — he created it. In his honor, the family had Carpe Diem printed on memorial t-shirts for all who gathered to remember him, a final reminder of the standard he set and the spirit he leaves behind.