Theodore Bevry Olson (born September 11, 1940) is an American
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
,
practicing at the
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, office of
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1890, the firm includes approximately 1,400 attorneys and 1,000 staff located in 20 offices around the world, including North ...
. Olson served as
United States Assistant Attorney General
Many of the divisions and offices of the United States Department of Justice are headed by an assistant attorney general.
The president of the United States appoints individuals to the position of assistant attorney general with the advice and ...
of the
Office of Legal Counsel
The Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) is an office in the United States Department of Justice that assists the Attorney General's position as legal adviser to the President and all executive branch agencies. It drafts legal opinions of the Attorney ...
(1981–1984) under President
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
and
United States Solicitor General
The solicitor general of the United States is the fourth-highest-ranking official in the United States Department of Justice. Elizabeth Prelogar has been serving in the role since October 28, 2021.
The United States solicitor general represent ...
(2001–2004) under President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
.
Early life
Theodore Olson was born in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, the son of Yvonne Lucy (Bevry) and Lester W. Olson. He grew up in
Mountain View, California
Mountain View is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Named for its views of the Santa Cruz Mountains, it has a population of 82,376.
Mountain View was integral to the early history and growth of Silicon Valley, and is the ...
, in the
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...
. He attended
Los Altos High School where he graduated in 1958. In 1962, Olson graduated ''
cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
'' from the
University of the Pacific with a degree in
communications
Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...
and
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
where he was a charter member of the
Phi Kappa Tau
Phi Kappa Tau (), commonly known as Phi Tau (), is a collegiate fraternity located in the United States. The fraternity was founded in 1906. As of November 2022, the fraternity has 161 chartered chapters, 79 active chapters, 6 Associate chapte ...
fraternity chapter. He earned his
J.D. degree from the
UC Berkeley School of Law
The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (commonly known as Berkeley Law or UC Berkeley School of Law) is the law school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It is one of 1 ...
in 1965. At Berkeley, Olson served as a contributor to the ''
California Law Review
''California Law Review'' (also referred to as ''CLR'') is the journal of the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. It was established in 1912. The application process consists of an anonymous write-on competition, with grades playing ...
'' and was a member of
Order of the Coif
The Order of the Coif is an honor society for United States law school graduates. The name is a reference to the ancient English order of advocates, the serjeants-at-law, whose courtroom attire included a coif—a white lawn or silk skullcap, whi ...
.
Legal career
Early legal career: 1965 to 2000
In 1965, Olson joined the
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, office of
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1890, the firm includes approximately 1,400 attorneys and 1,000 staff located in 20 offices around the world, including North ...
as an Associate. In 1972, he was named Partner.
From 1981 to 1984, Olson served as an
Assistant Attorney General
Many of the divisions and offices of the United States Department of Justice are headed by an assistant attorney general.
The president of the United States appoints individuals to the position of assistant attorney general with the advice and ...
(Office of Legal Counsel) in the
Reagan administration
Ronald Reagan's tenure as the 40th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a Republican from California, took office following a landslide victory over D ...
.
While serving in the Reagan administration, Olson was Legal Counsel to President Reagan during the
Iran-Contra Affair's investigation phase.
Olson was also the Assistant Attorney General for the
Office of Legal Counsel
The Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) is an office in the United States Department of Justice that assists the Attorney General's position as legal adviser to the President and all executive branch agencies. It drafts legal opinions of the Attorney ...
when then President
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
ordered the Administrator of the
EPA
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...
to withhold the documents on the ground that they contained "enforcement sensitive information." This led to an investigation by the
House Judiciary Committee
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, a ...
that later produced a report suggesting Olson had given false and misleading testimony before a House subcommittee during the investigation. The Judiciary Committee forwarded a copy of the report to the Attorney General, requesting the appointment of an
independent counsel
The Office of Special Counsel was an office of the United States Department of Justice established by provisions in the Ethics in Government Act that expired in 1999. The provisions were replaced by Department of Justice regulation 28 CFR Part ...
investigation.
Olson argued that the Independent Counsel took
executive
Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to:
Role or title
* Executive, a senior management role in an organization
** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators
** Executive dir ...
powers away from the office of the
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
and created a hybrid "fourth branch" of government that was ultimately answerable to no one. He argued that the broad powers of the Independent Counsel could be easily abused or corrupted by
partisanship
A partisan is a committed member of a political party or army. In multi-party systems, the term is used for persons who strongly support their party's policies and are reluctant to compromise with political opponents. A political partisan is no ...
. In the
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
Case ''
Morrison v. Olson
''Morrison v. Olson'', 487 U.S. 654 (1988), was a Supreme Court of the United States decision that determined the Independent Counsel Act was constitutional. ''Morrison'' also set important precedent determining the scope of Congress's ability ...
'', the Court disagreed with Olson and found in favor of the Plaintiff and independent counsel Alexia Morrison.
He returned to private law practice as a partner in the
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, office of his firm, Gibson Dunn.
A high-profile client in the 1980s was
Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Jay Pollard (born August 7, 1954) is a former intelligence analyst for the United States government. In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel. H ...
, who had been convicted of selling government secrets to Israel. Olson handled the appeal to
United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Olson argued the life sentence Pollard received was in violation of the
plea bargain
A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...
agreement, which had specifically excluded a life sentence. Olson also argued that the violation of the plea bargain was grounds for a
mistrial
In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, w ...
. The Court of Appeals ruled (2‑1) that no grounds for mistrial existed.
![Theodore Olson - 2010 - David Shankbone](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Theodore_Olson_-_2010_-_David_Shankbone.jpg)
Olson argued a dozen cases before the Supreme Court prior to becoming Solicitor General.
In one case, he argued against
federal sentencing guidelines
The United States Federal Sentencing Guidelines are rules published by the U.S. Sentencing Commission that set out a uniform policy for sentencing individuals and organizations convicted of felonies and serious (Class A) misdemeanors in the Unit ...
; and, in a case in New York state, he defended a member of the press who had first leaked the
Anita Hill
Anita Faye Hill (born July 30, 1956) is an American lawyer, educator and author. She is a professor of social policy, law, and women's studies at Brandeis University and a faculty member of the university's Heller School for Social Policy and ...
story.
Olson successfully represented presidential candidate
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
in the Supreme Court case ''
Bush v. Gore
''Bush v. Gore'', 531 U.S. 98 (2000), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court on December 12, 2000, that settled a recount dispute in Florida's 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. On December 8, th ...
'', which effectively ended the recount of the contested
2000 Presidential election.
Later legal career: 2001 to present
Olson was nominated for the office of
Solicitor General by
President Bush on February 14, 2001. He was confirmed by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
on May 24, 2001, and took office on June 11, 2001. In 2002, Olson argued for the federal government in the Supreme Court case ''Christopher v. Harbury'' (536 U.S. 403). Olson maintained that the government had an inherent right to lie: “There are lots of different situations where the government quite legitimately may have reasons to give false information out.” In July 2004, Olson retired as Solicitor General and returned to private practice at the Washington office of Gibson Dunn.
In 2006, Olson represented a defendant journalist in the civil case filed by
Wen Ho Lee
Wen Ho Lee or Li Wenho (; born December 21, 1939) is a Taiwanese-American scientist who worked for the University of California at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. He created simulations of nuclear explosions for the purposes of ...
and pursued the appeal to the Supreme Court.
Lee sued the federal government to discover which public officials had named him as a suspect to journalists before he had been charged.
Olson wrote a brief on behalf of one of the journalists involved in the case, saying that journalists should not have to identify confidential sources, even if
subpoena
A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...
ed by a court.
In 2011, Olson represented the
National Football League Players Association
The National Football League Players Association, or NFLPA, is a labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by president J. C. Tretter and executive director De ...
in the
2011 NFL lockout.
In 2009, he joined with President Clinton's former attorney
David Boies
David Boies (; born March 11, 1941) is an American lawyer and chairman of the law firm Boies Schiller Flexner LLP. Boies rose to national prominence for three major cases: leading the U.S. federal government's successful prosecution of Microsof ...
, who was also his opposing counsel in ''Bush v. Gore'', to bring a federal lawsuit, ''
Perry v. Schwarzenegger
Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also mad ...
'', challenging
Proposition 8
Proposition 8, known informally as Prop 8, was a California ballot proposition and a state constitutional amendment intended to ban same-sex marriage; it passed in the November 2008 California state elections and was later overturned in cou ...
, a California state constitutional amendment banning
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
. His work on the lawsuit earned him a place among the
Time 100
''Time'' 100 (often stylized as ''TIME'' 100) is an annual listicle of the 100 most influential people in the world, assembled by the American news magazine ''Time''. First published in 1999 as the result of a debate among American academics, po ...
's greatest thinkers. In 2011, Olson and David Boies were awarded the
ABA Medal The American Bar Association Medal (or ABA Medal) is the highest award given by the American Bar Association for "exceptionally distinguished service by a lawyer or lawyers to the cause of American jurisprudence." The ABA Board of Governors chooses ...
, the highest award of the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...
. In 2014, Olson received the Golden Plate Award of the
American Academy of Achievement
The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a non-profit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest achieving individuals in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet o ...
presented by Awards Council member
Brendan V. Sullivan, Jr.
Apple Inc.
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company ...
hired Olson to fight the
FBI–Apple encryption dispute
The FBI–Apple encryption dispute concerns whether and to what extent courts in the United States can compel manufacturers to assist in unlocking cell phones whose data are cryptographically protected. There is much debate over public access ...
court order to unlock an
iPhone, which ended with the government withdrawing its case.
Olson also represented
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
quarterback
Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
in the
Deflategate
Deflategate was a National Football League (NFL) controversy involving the allegation that New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady ordered the deliberate deflation of footballs used in the Patriots' victory against the Indianapolis Colts dur ...
scandal,
which ended with Brady electing not to pursue Supreme Court appeal of a four-game suspension.
In 2017, Olson represented a group of billboard advertisers in a lawsuit against the City of
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
. The group challenged a city law requiring soda companies to include in their advertisements warnings that consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with serious health risks like diabetes. The suit claimed that the law is an unconstitutional restriction on commercial speech. In September 2017, a panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with Olson and provisionally barred the city's mandated warnings.
In March 2018, Olson turned down an offer to represent
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
in the probe of Russian interference in the 2016 election.
In November 2019, Olson represented the
DACA
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, colloquially referred to as DACA, is a United States immigration policy that allows some individuals with unlawful presence in the United States after being brought to the country as children to receive a ...
recipients in the Supreme court case ''
''. On June 18, the Supreme Court upheld the program due to the failure of the Trump Administration to follow the
Administrative Procedure Act while rescinding DACA.
Personal life
Olson has been married four times. His first marriage was to Karen Beatie whom he met in college at the University of the Pacific.
Olson's second wife was Jolie Ann Bales, an attorney and a liberal Democrat.
Olson's third wife,
Barbara Kay Olson (née Bracher), an attorney and conservative commentator, was a passenger aboard the hijacked
American Airlines Flight 77 that crashed into a sector of the
Pentagon
In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°.
A pentagon may be simpl ...
on
September 11, 2001
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
. Her original plan was to fly to California on September 10, but she delayed her departure until the next morning so she could wake up with her husband on his birthday. Before she died, she called her husband to warn him about the flight. Some of the phone call was recorded and can still be heard today. On October 21, 2006, Olson married Lady Evelyn Booth, a
tax attorney
A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
from
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
and a lifelong
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
.
Politics
Olson was a founding member of the
Federalist Society
The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies (abbreviated as FedSoc) is an American conservative and libertarian legal organization that advocates for a textualist and originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. Headquarter ...
.
He has served on the board of directors of ''
American Spectator
''The American Spectator'' is a conservative American magazine covering news and politics, edited by R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. and published by the non-profit American Spectator Foundation. It was founded in 1967 by Tyrrell, who remains its editor- ...
'' magazine.
Olson was a prominent critic of
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
's presidency, and he helped prepare the attorneys of
Paula Jones
Paula Corbin Jones (born Paula Rosalee Corbin; September 17, 1966) is an American civil servant. A former Arkansas state employee, Jones sued United States President Bill Clinton for sexual harassment in 1994. In the initial lawsuit, Jones cite ...
prior to their Supreme Court appearance.
Olson served Giuliani's
2008 presidential campaign as judicial committee chairman.
In 2012 he participated in
Paul Ryan's preparation for the vice presidential debate, portraying
Joe Biden.
He is one of the outspoken advocates for gay marriage in the Republican Party.
Executive appointment speculation
Prior to President Bush's nomination of
D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge
John G. Roberts
John Glover Roberts Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served as the 17th chief justice of the United States since 2005. Roberts has authored the majority opinion in several landmark cases, including '' Nat ...
, Olson was considered a
potential nominee to the Supreme Court of the United States to fill
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26, 1930) is an American retired attorney and politician who served as the first female associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. She was both the first woman nominated and th ...
's post. Following the withdrawal of
Harriet Miers
Harriet Ellan Miers (born August 10, 1945) is an American lawyer who served as White House Counsel to President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2007. A member of the Republican Party since 1988, she previously served as White House Staff Secretary f ...
' nomination for that post, and prior to the nomination of
Third Circuit Court of Appeals
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (in case citations, 3d Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:
* District of Delaware
* District of New Jersey
* E ...
Judge
Samuel Alito
Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. ( ; born April 1, 1950) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President George W. Bush on October 31, 2005, and has served ...
, Olson's name was again mentioned as a possible nominee.
In September 2007, Olson was considered by the
Bush administration for the post of Attorney General to succeed
Alberto Gonzales. The Democrats, however, were so vehemently opposed that Bush nominated
Michael Mukasey
Michael Bernard Mukasey (; born July 28, 1941) is an American attorney and former federal judge who served as the 81st Attorney General of the United States from 2007 to 2009.
Born in New York City in 1941, Mukasey attended Ramaz School, gradua ...
instead.
References
Bibliography
*
*
External links
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher profile*
Campaign contributions made by Theodore Olson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Theodore
1940 births
Living people
California Republicans
California lawyers
Federalist Society members
George W. Bush administration personnel
Lawyers from Chicago
Lawyers from Washington, D.C.
LGBT rights activists from the United States
People associated with Gibson Dunn
Reagan administration personnel
The American Spectator people
United States Assistant Attorneys General for the Office of Legal Counsel
United States Solicitors General
UC Berkeley School of Law alumni
University of the Pacific (United States) alumni
Whitewater controversy