Walter K. Olson (born 1954) is an American author and blogger who writes mostly about legal subjects, including

tort reform Tort reform consists of changes in the civil justice system in common law countries that aim to reduce the ability of plaintiffs to bring tort litigation (particularly actions for negligence) or to reduce damages they can receive. Such changes ...

. Olson is a senior fellow of the

Cato Institute The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch ...

, a

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Formerly, Olson was associated with the Manhattan Institute in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He founded several websites, including the Manhattan Institute's scholarly PointOfLaw.com, and continues to run Overlawyered.com, a more popularly oriented website focusing on tort reform and alleged overreaching by

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

s. He has published four books on the American litigation system: ''The Litigation Explosion'', ''The Excuse Factory'', ''The Rule of Lawyers'', and most recently ''Schools for Misrule''. Olson is a Republican.

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

has dubbed Olson an "intellectual guru of tort reform." He has testified to Congress numerous times, and has written articles for publications such as ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'', ''

Reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing valid conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, religion, scien ...

'', ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

'', and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. His work is often discussed in the press and has been cited in court opinions. Olson is a graduate of

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and was cited in a 2014 list of religious unbelievers with conservative views. Despite being a legal pundit, he lacks a J.D. degree. Olson has written about redistricting reform and

gerrymandering Gerrymandering, ( , originally ) defined in the contexts of Representative democracy, representative electoral systems, is the political manipulation of Boundary delimitation, electoral district boundaries to advantage a Political party, pa ...

. In 2015 he was appointed by Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan as co-chair of the Maryland Redistricting Reform Commission, which issued recommendations later that year for comprehensive reform. The commission's recommendations served as a basis for legislation Hogan has introduced since then in the Maryland legislature.

Politics

Olson has said that while he campaigned for

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

in 2000, he did not support his re-election in 2004: "Foreign policy and defense blunders aside, the last thing I wanted was an administration combining aggressive

social conservatism Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on Tradition#In political and religious discourse, traditional social structures over Cultural pluralism, social pluralism. Social conservatives ...

with uncontrolled spending and big new government programs." Olson supports

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...

Personal life

Olson is married to Steve Pippin, with whom he has adopted a son.

Bibliography

* ''The Litigation Explosion: What Happened When America Released the Lawsuit''. E.P. Dutton/Truman Talley Books, 1991; * ''The Excuse Factory: How Employment Law is Paralyzing the American Workplace''. Free Press, 1997; * ''The Rule of Lawyers: How the New Litigation Elite Threatens America's Rule of Law''. Truman Talley Books, 2003; * ''Schools for Misrule: Legal Academia and an Overlawyered America''. Encounter Books, 2011, *

Ronald Hamowy Ronald Hamowy (; April 17, 1937 – September 8, 2012) was a Canadian academic, known primarily for his contributions to political and social academic fields. At the time of his death, he was professor emeritus of intellectual history at the Uni ...

, editor

References

External links

Cato Institute biography
*

on ''speechwriting-ghostwriting.typepad.com'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Walter K. 1954 births Living people American atheists American legal writers American bloggers American libertarians Yale University alumni Cato Institute people Manhattan Institute for Policy Research 21st-century American non-fiction writers