Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Expands Privacy and Data Protection Practice

- Former FTC Deputy Director Christopher N. Olsen Joins the Firm -

News provided by

Sep 14, 2015, 08:30 ET

PALO ALTO, Calif., Sept. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, the premier provider of legal services to technology, life sciences, and growth enterprises worldwide, announced that Christopher N. Olsen has joined the firm's privacy and data protection practice as a partner in the Washington, D.C., office. Prior to joining the firm, Olsen was deputy director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the Federal Trade Commission and, previously, assistant director of the FTC's Division of Privacy and Identity Protection. He also held privacy-related and enforcement roles at the Federal Communications Commission.

"Our clients have to protect against the threat of increasingly sophisticated data breaches, in addition to meeting the very high standards that govern the collection, storage, and use of information," said Doug Clark, the firm's co-managing partner. "Chris's leadership roles at the FTC and FCC put him at the center of critical privacy and data security developments that are of major concern to companies, especially those in the technology sector. His addition fortifies our highly regarded privacy and data protection practice and further strengthens our ability to help clients manage data breach issues."

With more than 30 attorneys throughout the U.S. and in Brussels, WSGR's privacy and data protection practice advises clients on every facet of privacy and data security laws globally. The team includes several other former senior officials from the U.S. Department of Justice's National Security Division, the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, and U.S. military contracting functions. It also includes privacy litigators who have represented leading technology companies in landmark privacy disputes and related FTC investigations.

While serving as deputy director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, Olsen oversaw the international work of the Division of Privacy and Identity Protection, which included the development and implementation of cross-border privacy rules for APEC member economies and enforcement of the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework. He also oversaw the Division of Enforcement, which monitors compliance with consumer protection rules and consumer protection orders, including those involving false advertising, privacy and data security, financial practices, high-tech fraud, and telemarketing.

Prior to joining the bureau director's office, Olsen was assistant director of the FTC's Division of Privacy and Identity Protection. In that role, he managed a number of significant privacy and security enforcement actions, as well as several of the most important privacy initiatives in recent FTC history.

Previously, during his tenure at the FCC, Olsen was involved in numerous privacy and net neutrality-related initiatives. As special counsel in the FCC's Telecommunications Consumers Division, he served on a management team responsible for the division's privacy initiatives, and as deputy chief of the Enforcement Bureau, he oversaw several of the most significant enforcement matters in FCC history, including the agency's first net neutrality order, its first actions enforcing the National Do-Not-Call requirements, and multimillion-dollar cases involving local competition and consumer protection rules. Earlier in his FCC career, he served as assistant division chief of the Market Disputes Resolution Division.

Prior to entering the public sector, Olsen was a litigation partner at Howrey Simon Arnold & White in Washington, D.C.

Olsen received his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1989. He earned an A.B., cum laude, from Dartmouth College in 1986.

About Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
For more than 50 years, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has offered a broad range of services and legal disciplines focused on serving the principal challenges faced by the management and boards of directors of business enterprises. The firm is nationally recognized as a leader in the fields of corporate governance and finance, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, securities litigation, employment law, intellectual property, and antitrust, among many other areas of law. With deep roots in Silicon Valley, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has offices in Austin; Beijing; Brussels; Hong Kong; Los Angeles; New York; Palo Alto; San Diego; San Francisco; Seattle; Shanghai; Washington, D.C.; and Wilmington, DE. For more information, please visit www.wsgr.com.