Ronald Olson
Munger, Tolles & Olson
Specialty: Commercial litigation
Law School: University of Michigan, 1966
When California Law Business polled 200 attorneys last fall to determine the “100 Most Influential Lawyers in California,” Ronald Olson’s name topped the list. In addition to being one of the country’s leading commercial litigators, Olson is one of the state’s top rainmakers, garnering more than $10 million worth of business for his firm each year, according to California Law Business.
Olson is often the one who is called in by large companies when they need to resolve major legal and financial disputes. His client list includes Southern California Edison, Unocal, TRW, Mobil, Phillip Morris Co. and Universal Studios.
Olson’s ability to untangle complex corporate litigation was apparent last year when he represented Merrill Lynch in the Orange County bankruptcy. The county accused Merrill of providing advice that led to the bankruptcy filing. Olson helped negotiate a settlement, under which Merrill Lynch paid the county $400 million.
That may not seem like a victory, but the county was seeking upwards of $2 billion and the consensus among legal experts was that Merrill would rather take a huge hit than be subjected to protracted litigation. The outcome, $400 million and no trial, was viewed by many as a coup.
Olson was also lead counsel for Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. (which operates the Trans-Alaska Pipeline) and its oil company owners in disputes arising from the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Alyeska settled all claims against it for $98 million considerably less than the $5 billion in punitive damages assessed against Exxon.
In another high-profile case, Olson represented Salomon Bros. against criminal charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Treasury Department and several other regulatory agencies that the investment firm had violated U.S. Treasury auction rules in 1991. The case was settled with relatively little injury to Salomon. All charges were dismissed and the firm was fined $290 million.
Warren Buffett, then acting as Salomon’s interim chairman, credited Olson’s contribution to the settlement in Salomon’s 1992 annual report.
“Salomon’s lead lawyer in its government matters, Ron Olson of Munger, Tolles & Olson, was key to our success in getting through this trouble,” wrote Buffett. (Munger, Tolles is the firm of Buffett’s longtime colleague, Charles Munger.)
Olson graduated from University of Michigan School of Law in 1966, then spent a year at Oxford University. After a brief stint as an attorney for the civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Justice and clerking for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge David Bazelon, he joined Munger, Tolles in 1968. His name was added to the letterhead in 1986.
Rebecca Kuzins
