Louis Leitz (2 May 1846 – 18 May 1918) was a German inventor and founder of Esselte Leitz GmbH & Co KG, trained as a woodturner and also worked as a mechanic.
Leitz was born in Ingersheim. In 1896 he designed the file with a finger hole and a sturdy closing clip. Leitz died in Stuttgart.
Louis Leitz Foundation was founded in his memory on the 30 November 2001. The foundation's budget is Euro 120,000 p.a.