Christl passes on wisdom to the next generation.

Byline: Tiffany Nesbitt

Donald Christl has been a mainstay in Milwaukee legal circles for more than 50 years.

"I started as the eighth name on the firm's letterhead and finished, for the last five years or so of my active practice, as the first name on a list of 238 attorneys," said Christl, who is of counsel to ReinhartBoerner Van Deuren.

Throughout his storied career,Christl has always been willing to do the sorts of hard jobs that may give rise to white knuckles among less-seasoned attorneys.

"He asks the meaningful questions, the questions that drive others to gain perspective, see things differently and seek progress. He is consistently the one to offer to lead," said Gary Van Domelen, principal at his namesake law firm and chairman of the Office of Lawyer Regulation Board of Administrative Oversight, for which Christl has been a volunteer board member since 2014.

Christl's work has taken him around the world. He has spoken about U.S. tax and benefits laws on four other continents. His work has also brought him before distinguished bodies, such as the House Ways and Means Committee in the early '80s, when he testified about tax-qualified retirement plans.

Now at ReinhartBoerner Van Deuren, he advises individuals, medical-practice groups and closely held businesses on a wide range of tax, management and employee-benefit matters.

"My work with closely held businesses allowed me to facilitate their growth and ultimate prosperity," Christl said. "One client literally started a...