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Portland鈥檚 Markowitz, Herbold, Glade & Mehlhaf is mourning the loss of longtime shareholder and well-respected litigator Bill Mehlhaf, who died Feb. 4 after a six-month battle with cancer.

Mehlhaf grew up in Corvallis and received his bachelor鈥檚 degree from Oregon State University. He earned his law degree at Lewis & Clark Law School. Before joining MHGM as a shareholder in 1989, he was a partner in two other Portland firms and worked as a Multnomah County assistant district attorney.

Among the many honors he received during his 37-year career, Mehlhaf was recognized in The Best Lawyers in America for commercial litigation, and was named a Super Lawyer, an honor limited to the top 5 percent of attorneys in Oregon. He also was listed as a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation.

Peter Glade, the firm鈥檚 managing shareholder, was partners with Mehlhaf for 22 years. Glade said he admired Mehlhaf鈥檚 meticulous preparation for cases, his talent for strategic thinking, and his anticipation of any twist or turn a case might take.

鈥淲e had a very tight, close partnership-relationship, so I came to rely on Bill鈥檚 judgment and counsel, his goodwill in both the litigation arena and also in our business together, and our personal relations with one another and with the rest of the firm,鈥� he said. 鈥淗e always had a carefully thought-out, measured response to whatever kind of question you might pose to him.鈥�

Above all, Glade said, he appreciated Mehlhaf鈥檚 wry sense of humor.

鈥淏ill always managed to lighten even the most difficult moments, which I think is the thing I may miss about him the most,鈥� Glade said.

Shareholder Lisa Kaner worked with Mehlhaf for 21 years. She said he frequently made others in the firm laugh by forwarding Nigerian scam emails seeking money and legal services and declaring, tongue in cheek, that he was on a big case and needed colleagues to help him.

鈥淗e was an absolutely brilliant strategist and he was someone you always knew had your back. Anytime you did anything with him, you knew he was committed to doing a fabulous job,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e often didn鈥檛 say anything until he actually had something important to say, which is a quality that lawyers sometimes lack.鈥�

Mehlhaf is survived by his wife, Lynn, and his daughter, Nina.