William Wilde

William R. Wilde, age 65, of Middleton, Wisconsin, passed away on Tuesday, January 8, 2019. He was born on March 1, 1953 in Waupun, the son of Leslie M. Wilde and Elaine M. Schweder Wilde. He married Barbara Rohlf on January 6, 1990 in Markesan.

Bill graduated magna cum laude from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee in 1976, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Psychology. From 1975 to 1976, while attending graduate school at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee in Public Administration, he received a graduate program appointment to Fox Lake Correctional Institution where he worked as a case worker. Although he was offered a permanent position at Fox Lake, he decided to pursue a legal career and attended Marquette University Law School from 1977 to 1980, receiving his Juris Doctorate in 1980. Bill was admitted to the Wisconsin State Bar, Wisconsin State Courts and the 7th Circuit Federal District Courts in 1980. He returned to his home town of Markesan and established Wilde Law Office in 1980. Bill was elected Green Lake County District Attorney in 1980 and served two terms in that position until 1984. He was also interim Green Lake County Corporation Counsel in 1981. From 1984 to 1997, he was a partner in a civil trial practice in Oshkosh that evolved over the course of 13 years from two trial lawyers and a small support staff to six trial lawyers and a support staff of 15 to 18 employees. Wilde Law Offices LLC, a civil litigation practice, was created in 1997 in Oshkosh where Bill practiced until his retirement. Bill litigated cases in over 20 counties, including Milwaukee, Dane and Brown, with the majority of cases being venued in the Fox Valley and Central Wisconsin. Bill also maintained his branch office in Markesan. During his years In private practice, Bill was also appointed as Special Prosecutor in a number of cases.

Professional Affiliations/Positions/Recognition:
Green Lake County Bar Association (President 1981)
Winnebago County Bar Association
Wisconsin District Attorneys Association (1980-1984)
Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, founding member and Board of Directors (1985-1990)
Wisconsin Association of Justice:
President 1997; President-Elect 1996; Vice President 1995; Secretary 1994; Treasurer 1993
Board of Directors 1989-1992
Amicus Brief Committee 1987-1992
Contributing Editor, The Verdict 1992-2011
Legislative and Long-Range Planning Committees 1997-2011
Co-Chair of Continuing Legal Education Seminar Committee 1995-1996
Bill is survived by his wife of 29 years, Barbara Rohlf, of Middleton; a daughter, Leah (Jeremy) Jackowski and grandsons, Brady and Jordy, of Princeton; son, John (Kelli) Schneider and granddaughter, Claire, of Wilton, New Hampshire; three sisters, Nancy Baisden of Beaver Dam, Leslie (Dennis) Dallman and Anne Wilde, both of Markesan; nieces and nephews, Danielle (Rick) Edgerton and their son, Braden, of McFarland; William S. Wilde of Markesan and his daughter, Kayden, of Smithville, Texas; Michelle Baisden of Evansville; Scott (Rachel Mehne) Baisden, their son, Mason and daughter, Rylea, of Elroy; Issac Dallman and Alex Dallman, both of Markesan; Aunt Del Schweder and many cousins.

Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Leslie and Elaine (Schweder) Wilde, his sister, Joan Wilde, and his wife's parents, Roger Rohlf and Mary Ann Hayden. Please share a memory.

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee."
John Donne

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