Even for a lawyer with a career as storied as Theodore Olson’s, this is shaping up to be a landmark year. Olson, a partner in the DC office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, has been at the center of two of the most talked-about legal matters of the new decade. And each has a very different group of supporters.
“People hate me for one and love me for the other—or vice versa,” he says.
Olson, one of the nation’s most prominent Republican lawyers, is talking about the recent decision handed down by the Supreme Court in Citizens United v. the Federal Election Commission and the trial in California federal court over Proposition 8, the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.
In the first case, Olson advocated for Citizens United, a conservative organization, which won its argument that a restriction on corporate political spending was a violation of the First Amendment. The ruling wasn’t supported by any members of the Court’s liberal wing, and it pushed President Obama to take a dig at the high court during his State of the Union address.
However, the matter Olson is proudest of is his work on the Prop 8 case: “I can’t imagine a more gratifying professional experience than the trial of that case.”
Olson’s representation—alongside much more liberal New York lawyer David Boies—of gay couples who want full marriage equality has shocked many of his right-leaning friends. The Prop 8 trial lasted three weeks earlier this year, and closing arguments are expected in March.
Says Olson: “The impact and significance of the ultimate outcome could change the lives of literally millions of people.”
Marisa M. Kashino joined Washingtonian in 2009 as a staff writer, and became a senior editor in 2014. She was previously a reporter for Legal Times and the National Law Journal. She has recently written about the Marriott family’s civil war and the 50-year rebirth of 14th Street, and reported the definitive oral history of the Lorena and John Wayne Bobbitt case. She lives in Northeast DC with her husband, two dogs, and two cats.
Loving, Hating Theodore Olson
Even for a lawyer with a career as storied as Theodore Olson’s, this is shaping up to be a landmark year. Olson, a partner in the DC office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, has been at the center of two of the most talked-about legal matters of the new decade. And each has a very different group of supporters.
“People hate me for one and love me for the other—or vice versa,” he says.
Olson, one of the nation’s most prominent Republican lawyers, is talking about the recent decision handed down by the Supreme Court in Citizens United v. the Federal Election Commission and the trial in California federal court over Proposition 8, the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.
In the first case, Olson advocated for Citizens United, a conservative organization, which won its argument that a restriction on corporate political spending was a violation of the First Amendment. The ruling wasn’t supported by any members of the Court’s liberal wing, and it pushed President Obama to take a dig at the high court during his State of the Union address.
However, the matter Olson is proudest of is his work on the Prop 8 case: “I can’t imagine a more gratifying professional experience than the trial of that case.”
Olson’s representation—alongside much more liberal New York lawyer David Boies—of gay couples who want full marriage equality has shocked many of his right-leaning friends. The Prop 8 trial lasted three weeks earlier this year, and closing arguments are expected in March.
Says Olson: “The impact and significance of the ultimate outcome could change the lives of literally millions of people.”
Subscribe to Washingtonian
Follow Washingtonian on Twitter
More>> Capital Comment Blog | News & Politics | Party Photos
Marisa M. Kashino joined Washingtonian in 2009 as a staff writer, and became a senior editor in 2014. She was previously a reporter for Legal Times and the National Law Journal. She has recently written about the Marriott family’s civil war and the 50-year rebirth of 14th Street, and reported the definitive oral history of the Lorena and John Wayne Bobbitt case. She lives in Northeast DC with her husband, two dogs, and two cats.
Editors' Picks
The 100 Very Best Restaurants in Washington
Bad News for the NFL: John Riggins’ Wife Is a Lawyer
The High-Paid DC Millennials Who Are Using Side Hustles to “Ball Out”
Meet Britt McHenry, the Fox News Star for Millennials
Most Popular in News
“The Handmaid’s Tale” Is Filming on the National Mall and the Photos are Kinda Intense
The High-Paid DC Millennials Who Are Using Side Hustles to “Ball Out”
Bad News for the NFL: John Riggins’ Wife Is a Lawyer
A Shocking Love Triangle Has Broken Up DC’s Favorite Bald Eagle Power Couple
Is the Acela Really a High-Speed Train?
February 2019: 100 Very Best Restaurants
Related
A Look Inside One of the Country’s Biggest Vinyl Record Plants
There Are Still Six Confederate Memorials Around DC. How’s That Possible?
“Investment Layoff” Is a Masterpiece of Corporate Euphemism
Secret Service: Man Claimed to Be Jesus and Plotted to Kidnap One of the Obamas’ Dogs
More from News
“The Handmaid’s Tale” Is Filming on the National Mall and the Photos are Kinda Intense
The Amazon Resistance Won in New York. What Does it Mean for Virginia?
Jelani Cobb on the Super Bowl, Ralph Northam, and the State of Black History
We Asked These Washingtonians Who They Were Buying Flowers For on Valentine’s Day
Who Would Go See Howard Schultz Speak on Valentine’s Day?
Washingtonian Today: Amazon Dumps NYC on Valentine’s Day
The People Who Still Have to Work When Washington Has a Snow Day
A Shocking Love Triangle Has Broken Up DC’s Favorite Bald Eagle Power Couple