Theodore Bevry Olson (commonly known as Ted Olson) was a prominent American lawyer and former U.S. Solicitor General, a high-profile attorney renowned for his conservative legal advocacy and significant roles in U.S. government. Born on September 11, 1940, he grew up in Mountain View, California, graduating from Los Altos High School in 1958. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of the Pacific in 1962 and a Juris Doctor from UC Berkeley School of Law in 1965. Early in his career, he clerked for Judge David W. Williams of the Ninth Circuit and worked at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, eventually becoming a longtime partner. Olson served as Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel under President Ronald Reagan (1981-1984) and later as the 42nd Solicitor General of the United States under President George W. Bush (2001-2004), arguing 65 cases before the Supreme Court. He played a pivotal role in the landmark Bush v. Gore case in 2000, which resolved the presidential election dispute. Despite his conservative roots, Olson later advocated for liberal causes, including co-authoring the successful challenge to California's Proposition 8 in 2010, advancing marriage equality, and representing children of undocumented immigrants in education rights cases. Olson passed away on November 13, 2024, in Fairfax, Virginia, at age 84. He was a towering figure in constitutional law, bridging ideological divides and influencing major legal precedents across the political spectrum.