Litigation: Appellate
Colorado
3 years ranked
Provided by Olson Grimsley Kawanabe Hinchcliff & Murray LLC
Litigation: Appellate (Colorado); Litigation: General Commercial (Colorado)
Clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, D.C. Circuit Judge Harry Edwards, and chair of the Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation, District Court Judge John Heyburn in Kentucky.
Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, a Member of the American Law Institute, the former Board Chair of the Colorado Legal Aid Foundation, and a board member of the Heyburn Initiative for Excellence in the Federal Judiciary.
At Olson Grimsley, Eric has co-led a trial team that obtained a $20 million antitrust verdict against Johns Manville, a construction material company owned by Berkshire Hathaway; co-leads a team seeking to secure the fair share for college athletes of the revenue they create; and fights for workers who built the Qatar stadiums who claim they are victims of human trafficking.
Before co-founding Olson Grimsley, Eric served as the Solicitor General of Colorado, where he was lead counsel on five merits cases at the U.S. Supreme Court. He led investigations of the Aurora Police and Fire Departments after the killing of Elijah McClain that resulted in one of the first state consent decrees in the country and the Catholic Church for child sex abuse. Eric also designed and executed settlement strategies with McKinsey that led to a $573 million, 49-state settlement for its work contributing to the opioid crisis and separately with local governments for a first-in-the-country agreement that brought $740 million in opioid settlements to Colorado. Eric received the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Performance and the Mentor of the Year Award.
Eric previously was a trial lawyer at Bartlit Beck for 16 years where he tried cases to verdict in seven states, served in leadership roles in three major MDLs including trying an MDL class action case to verdict and arguing before the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, and recovered over $900 million for plaintiffs in patent, antitrust, and employment cases.
Eric has also served as a mediator in complex business disputes, bringing his diverse experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants to help parties resolve complicated cases.
Eric was first ranked by Chambers in 2013 and is currently ranked in Appellate and Litigation. He was recently selected as one of Denver Business Journal’s Power Book of 45 Business Leaders to Watch and, along with all five founders of Olson Grimsley, Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Plaintiffs Financial Lawyers.
Michigan Law School
J.D.
Oberlin College
B.A.
Leading Plaintiffs Financial Lawyers
Lawdragon 500
2025
Leading Global Plaintiff Lawyers
Lawdragon 500
2025
Leading Global Antitrust & Competition Lawyers
Lawdragon 500
2025
Leading Lawyers in America
Lawdragon 500
2025
Provided by Chambers
Eric Olson brings his experience as Solicitor General of Colorado to his practice and is highly regarded for his civil and commercial trial expertise, with a particular strength in appellate proceedings. His work on behalf of plaintiffs has spanned areas including antitrust, product liability and civil rights.
Eric Olson brings his experience as Solicitor General of Colorado to his practice and is highly regarded for his civil and commercial trial expertise, with a particular strength in appellate proceedings. His work on behalf of plaintiffs has spanned areas including antitrust, product liability and civil rights.
Provided by Chambers
He is an outstanding lawyer.
Eric is a routine figure in the appellate space. His reputation is sterling, he is very active and I think very highly of him.
Eric Olson kept us out of the fire. He can quote chapter and verse to the judge.
Eric is down-to-earth and great on the stand. His briefs are well written and he is also compelling.
Eric is someone who understands the power of the practice of law and has made a decision to harness that power and use it for good.
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