Walter Olson

Walter K. Olson (born August 20, 1954) is an author and blogger who writes mostly about tort reform. Olson is a senior fellow of the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank in Washington, D.C. Formerly, Olson was associated with the Manhattan Institute in New York City. 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 lawyers. He has published three books on the American litigation system: The Litigation Explosion, The Excuse Factory, and most recently Schools for Misrule.

The Washington Post 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, Reason, and The New York Times. His work is often discussed in the press and has been cited in court opinions.

Olson is a graduate of Yale University and an atheist.