04/20/2005
CONTACT: Michael E. Diegel, (202) 554-9000
Washington, D.C. -- The Legal Foundation of the National Federation of Independent Business today announced that former United States Solicitor General Theodore B. Olson has joined its Advisory Board.
Olson, a partner in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's Washington, D.C., office, will join the 13 current board members and help guide the foundation in choosing cases to pursue as well as recommend topics for legal advisory material for small-business owners.
"Mr. Olson's vast legal experience will be a tremendous asset to America's small businesses," said Karen Harned, executive director of the Legal Foundation. "Increasingly the courts are making many of the decisions that impact small business' bottom line. Mr. Olson's years of expertise and judgment in court matters will be invaluable to the Foundation as we continue our fight for small-business owners."
"Small business is the backbone of America and I'm pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to the success of this vital sector of our economy," Olson said. "NFIB's Legal Foundation provides important assistance to small-business owners who are busy running their businesses and not always able to devote the time and resources needed to speak for themselves on legal and regulatory issues."
Olson was solicitor general of the United States from 2001-2004 and served as assistant United States attorney general for the Office of Legal Counsel in 1981-1984. He has argued 41 cases in the Supreme Court, including Bush v. Palm Beach Country Canvassing Board and Bush v. Gore, stemming from the 2000 presidential election.
In his current practice, he concentrates on constitutional law, appellate litigation, federal legislation, media and commercial disputes, and assisting clients with developing strategies for the containment, management and resolution of major legal crises. He has handled cases at all levels of state and federal court systems throughout the United States and in international tribunals.
Olson's Supreme Court arguments have included cases of particular interest to business owners, including equal protection and due process clauses, the constitutionality of independent regulatory agencies, punitive damages, takings of property and just compensation under the Fifth Amendment, the Commerce Clause, immigration, copyright, antitrust, securities, telecommunications, the Internet and other federal constitutional and statutory questions.
NFIB's Legal Foundation was founded in 2000 to protect the interests of small-business owners in the nation's courts. In 1996, Congress gave small-business owners an important legal tool – the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act. SBREFA opened the door for judicial review of agency decisions that affect small businesses. Through the NFIB Legal Foundation, small business can challenge agency decisions that do not adequately consider their impact on small business – the basic requirement of SBREFA.
