Michael St. Peter

May 26, 1937 – August 16, 2017

Michael St. Peter, a retired lawyer and 50-year San Francisco resident, died peacefully at his home on August 16. He was 80 years old.

St. Peter was born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin as the oldest of seven children. His mother, Jane St. Peter, studied in Paris at the Sorbonne before raising a family. His father, George St. Peter, was highly-regarded as a judge and, later, as a lawyer for the dairy industry.

After graduating from the University of Notre Dame in 1959, St. Peter enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. He left the service as an officer with the rank of Captain and often said that his Marine Corps training was his most important educational experience.

He obtained a law degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1967 where he served as the Managing Editor of the Law Review. He then headed west to San Francisco and joined the firm of Pillsbury Madison & Sutro and practiced there for several years before starting his own firm. He specialized in antitrust law, advising large and small corporate clients on issues of product distribution, price discrimination, and other business matters. He practiced law for over 40 years.

St. Peter was a man of many interests. He was an avid golfer who held a single-digit handicap for most of his life, and especially enjoyed playing links courses in Ireland. He proudly served as President of the Presidio Golf Club during the transition of the Presidio from the Sixth Army to the National Park Service. He also published a magazine focused on black-and-white photography, flew airplanes, raced sailboats, enjoyed fly fishing, and read voraciously with a particular interest in constitutional history and his beloved father’s World War II generation.

He leaves behind his wife of 34 years, Mary Ann, his son, Mitchell, his daughterin-law, Jeanne, and his six siblings, Mary, Christine, Charles, John, Therese, and David. Michael was looking forward to becoming a grandfather in late November.

He will be remembered by family and friends as an unassuming man with a sharp wit. He befriended people with his warm personality and a stable of Irish jokes.

In his memory, the family suggests a donation to The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, The BASIC Fund, or one’s favorite charity.

His life will be celebrated at a memorial mass at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in San Francisco on Friday, September 15, 2017 at 10:30 am.