ANN ARBOR—Lee A. Lillard III, director of the University of Michigan Retirement Research Center, senior research scientist at the U-M Institute for Social Research, and professor of economics, died Dec. 2 at his home here after a heart attack. He was 57.

An applied econometrician and labor economist who worked jointly with many and diverse co-authors, Lillard made important contributions to the study of life-cycle earnings, marriage, fertility, divorce, mortality, intergenerational mobility, and a wide variety of other issues of general interest.

While at the U-M, he also served as a member of the steering committee of the U-M Health and Retirement Study, directed by economist Robert J. Willis. “Lee was my friend, collaborator and colleague for more than 25 years,” said Willis. “Throughout his career he made significant and immediate contributions to his profession with his keen intellect and intense commitment to doing the best possible social science research. His leadership of the Michigan Retirement Research Center reflected his commitment to giving public policy a firm basis in social science.”

Before joining the U-M in 1998, Lillard spent 20 years with RAND in Santa Monica, Calif., where he held a variety of positions. “As the founding director of RAND’s Center for the Study of Aging, he established one of the leading research programs on aging in the world,” said James P. Smith, a friend and RAND colleague.

While at RAND, he received a National Institute on Aging MERIT Award, the most prestigious award given by National Institutes of Health.

“Lee was well known in the fields of economics and demography as an incredibly energetic researcher who was always eager to expand into new fields,” said David Lam, U-M professor of economics and director of the Population Studies Center at the ISR. “He was also a great collaborator who was committed to interdisciplinary research. We were very fortunate to have attracted him to the U-M, and we will greatly miss his enthusiastic personality and his exceptional research abilities.”

Born Nov. 12, 1943, in Arlington, Texas, Lillard received a B.S. degree in mathematics in 1966 from the University of Texas at Arlington, an M.A. in economics in 1968 from Southern Methodist University, and an M.S. in 1970 and a joint Ph.D. in economics and statistics from North Carolina State University in 1972. Before joining RAND in 1978, he served as a research associate and project director at the National Bureau of Economic Research. During his career, he also held visiting positions at various universities and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“Lee was painstakingly careful with data,” said Finis Welch, distinguished professor of economics at Texas A & M University, a friend and colleague who was Lillard’s teacher and mentor at SMU. “He was also an extraordinarily competent analyst and the most energetic researcher I have ever known. I have seen many hard workers. Most burn out after a few years. None surpassed Lee in dedication and effort.”

Lillard is survived by his daughter, Jennifer of Los Angeles, Calif.; his father, Lee A. Lillard II of Granbury, Texas; and his grandmother, Lucille Lillard of Arlington, Texas. He was preceded in death by his mother, Harriet Jean Lillard. Burial will be in Arlington, with a memorial service planned for

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