Martin Bruce Vidgoff was born Jan. 30, 1943 and died June 19, 2023. He was the son of Dr. Ben Vidgoff and Laura Horwitt Vidgoff and the brother of Dr. Jaclyn Vidgoff. Martin graduated from Lincoln High School in Portland in 1961 and from Harvard College in 1966 with an A.B. degree cum laude in government. He received his Juris Doctor degree from Stanford Law School in 1969, where he was president of the student Law Association. 
Martin became a member of the Oregon State Bar in 1969 and initially worked as an associate of the Miller Nash firm in Portland. Next Martin served as Deputy County Counsel for Multnomah County. In 1978 he followed Multnomah County Counsel George Joseph to the Oregon Court of Appeals, where Martin served as staff attorney for 23 years. 
Martin was known for his formidable intellect and precise memory of the law. He was very much an old-fashioned gentleman, and could quite often politely point to the precise volume in the Oregon Reports where one could find the answer to a legal question. He was given to murmuring (or occasionally muttering) profound insights into the law, delivering lengthy monologues on the assassination of JFK, and telling humorous stories about the political insights of his cats Ishmael and Barnaby. 
Former Appeals Court Chief Judge Mary Deits stated that Martin drafted more than 1,100 opinions for the Court of Appeals during his years of service to the Court. Judge Deits also referred to Martin’s “ability to write a perfectly worded opinion in a difficult case-often in a matter of hours.” Many of his opinion drafts dealt with Oregon land use law. Former Oregon Supreme Justice William Riggs stated Martin drafted “just about all of the landmark land use decisions for [the Court of Appeals] for a long time.” 
Martin’s humor was legendary. When he graduated from Stanford Law School, he wrote about himself: “I had a normal childhood except for never catching the mumps. Then I went to Harvard, where I caught the mumps.” Martin was preceded in death by his parents; his sister; and many close family members. Martin’s burial and funeral were held June 22, 2023, at the Neveh Zedek Cemetery Mausoleum, in Beaverton, Ore.