Wisconsin Past Grand Master Jim Olson closes law practice

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Olson closes law practice

By AARON HOLBROOK, Editor
Aaron Holbrook can be reached at aholbrook@capitalnewspapers.com.


Dodge County Court Commissioner Jim Olson sometimes gives youths who appear in front of him a stern lecture in hopes it will motivate them to behave better.
What they may not know is that Olson has first-hand experience with a youth who needed discipline and motivation.
Himself.
A 1958 Beaver Dam High School graduate, Olson went to the University of Wisconsin Madison for two years and realized he needed to try something else. So he enlisted in the United States Army from 1960 to 1963 and then returned to UW Madison.
"That sharpened my focus," Olson said, adding with a chuckle that he nearly doubled his grade point average his first semester back.
By 1968 he had graduated law school and he parlayed an $35-a-week internship at Strub, Woodworth and O'Connell of Beaver Dam, into a job.
That started a 40-year career in law, one that will draw to a close Jan. 1. Olson said he will continue as a court commissioner, which occupies him about one day a week, and will continue to help a few long-standing clients.
Olson was appointed District Attorney in Dodge County in August 1969. It was a part-time position, so he also was able to establish a small law practice.
"I learned a lot in a hurry," Olson said.
And what he learned wasn't all about the law. Olson said Ed Nehls was sheriff at the time and he learned political savvy from the time he spent campaigning with Nehls.
The two also worked well together professionally, and Olson said there were six or seven murders in Dodge County while he was District Attorney. All but one resulted in a conviction.
The one case that was not resolved may have involved a person who was killed elsewhere, but whose body was dumped in the county.
But Olson wearied of criminal law and in 1975 left the DA's post to go into practice with Dave Schacht, and then later establish his own practice.
Olson has done probate, personal injury, divorce and real estate law. He has served some families for generations.
His public service was not limited to district attorney. Olson was on the Beaver Dam School Board for 21 years and said proudly that every referendum passed.
Olson also reffed high school football for 30 years with Jeff Giese and Todd McCarthy.
He said with a smile, "I did notice that as the years went by, the kids got faster."
A long-time Freemason, Olson was the Wisconsin Grand Master in 2002-03 which involved a great deal of travel.
He said Judy, his wife of 11 years, has been a great help to him.
"She does let me have the final say occasionally," he said.
Of course he can always have the final say in the courtroom and said he enjoys knowing that sometimes what he tells youth as well as adults in the courtroom can make a difference in their lives.
As he packed up his office on North Spring Street just before Christmas, Olson reflected on the changes in the law profession. He pointed to the heavy law books on the shelf and said he had spent thousands of dollars maintaining up to date books that now are held on a single CD ROM.
At least one thing has not changed much and that is the people he helped. "I've had so many wonderful clients," he said.

WiscNews.com : Beaver Dam Daily Citizen Online