A partner of Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, John M. Lewis became the primary advisor to philanthropist Irma Hirschl. He encouraged her to dedicate her wealth to advance biomedical research at institutions in New York City, and was instrumental in creating the Irma T. Hirschl Trust. Shortly after Mr. Lewis’ death in 1994, the firm established the John M. Lewis Memorial Lecture, given by a former recipient of the Hirschl Research Award on a consequential medical topic. The annual lecture is hosted on a rotating basis by one of the six New York–area medical centers that receive funds from the Trust. Dr. Oliver Hobert received the Hirschl Research Award in 2000 and was selected to give the 2022 Lewis Memorial Lecture, marking the last lecture to date.

The 2024 John M. Lewis Memorial Lecturer is Dr. Olga Boudker, Ph.D., Acting Chair and Professor of the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at Weill Cornell Medicine, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator. Her lecture is titled "The Molecular Mechanisms of Glutamate Transporters: Ancient Pumps Regulating Neurotransmission".