The founding partner of Olson Law, PLLC, Chris Olson, was featured in the 2024 edition of NC Super Lawyers. The article, titled “Work Worth Doing,” profiled Olson’s two-decade career of fighting for the rights of those whose voices for too long went unheard. Olson sat for an interview late in 2023 for the recently published profile piece. He explained that he likes taking on a challenge, both personally and professionally.
The article covered some of the highlights of Olson’s career, including his work as class counsel in two long-running consumer class action lawsuits and his representation of Ronnie Long during both his exoneration effort and his successful post-exoneration civil rights lawsuit. In the class action lawsuits, Olson represented low-income homeowners victimized by unfair lending practices. The suits, against Bank of America and CitiFinancial were resolved for $38.75 million and $42.5 million, respectively, and provided substantial monetary relief to thousands of North Carolina homeowners.
In the Ronnie Long case, Olson served as a volunteer lawyer alongside a team with the Duke Wrongful Convictions Clinic. Those efforts led to a win before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and an Order vacating Mr. Long’s convictions after a 44-year wrongful incarceration. Olson then represented Mr. Long in his civil rights lawsuit that settled for a total of $25 million and a formal, public letter of apology from the City of Concord. The settlement in the Ronnie Long case represents the largest single wrongful incarceration settlement ever in North Carolina and one of the highest settlement figures nationally.
The NC Super Lawyers article also highlighted Olson’s free-time passion for difficult day hikes. He has twice summited Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous United States, as well as Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. Olson has also day-hiked the Black Mountain Crest Trail and completed the Rim-to-Rim crossing of the Grand Canyon.
