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Daniel E. Olsen was admitted to practice law
in Wisconsin in 2008. Olsen is also
admitted to practice law in Colorado.
First Matter
On August 26, 2013, Olsen was charged with
two separate counts of Knowingly Operate
Motor Vehicle While Suspended – Cause Great
Bodily Harm, in violation of Wis. Stats. §
343.44(1)(a) and (2)(ag)2, a Class I felony.
State v. Olsen, Jefferson County case
no. 2013CF0332. The charges stemmed from a
June 30, 2013 automobile accident caused by
Olsen in the Town of Jefferson, when Olsen
made a left turn into an oncoming vehicle.
Olsen was driving with a suspended driver’s
license at the time of the accident, a fact
he reported to responding sheriff’s
deputies. The driver of the other vehicle
and a passenger in that vehicle were injured
in the accident. As a result of the June
30, 2013 accident, Olsen was also charged
with non-criminal failure to yield while
making a left turn (resulting in great
bodily harm) and operating without insurance
in Jefferson County case nos. 2013TR4124 and
2013TR4125, respectively.
At a hearing on April 1, 2015, pursuant to
no contest pleas, Olsen was found guilty of
two separate amended counts of Reckless
Driving – Cause Bodily Harm, in violation of
Wis. Stat. § 346.62(3), an unclassified
misdemeanor. The remaining non-criminal
charges were dismissed on the prosecutor’s
motion.
At the subsequent sentencing hearing, the
court withheld sentence and placed Olsen on
probation for two years on each count,
concurrent, conditioned on 30 days in jail
per count, consecutive. The jail sentence
was stayed. Sentence terms also required
Olsen to pay restitution to the passenger in
the other vehicle in the amount of $32,556,
to pay court costs and DNA surcharge, to
maintain full-time employment, to follow all
orders of the bar associations of Wisconsin
and Colorado, and to not operate a motor
vehicle unless properly licensed and
insured.
The Office of Lawyer Regulation (OLR)
learned of Olsen’s April 1, 2015 criminal
conviction from a source other than Olsen.
After receiving OLR’s April 29, 2015 notice
of investigation, Olsen provided notice of
his conviction to OLR and the Clerk of the
Wisconsin Supreme Court in correspondence
dated May 28, 2015.
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Knowing that he was driving with a suspended
driver’s license, by engaging in conduct
leading to a misdemeanor conviction of two
counts of Reckless Driving – Cause Bodily
Harm, in State v. Olsen, Jefferson County
case no. 2013CF0332, Attorney Olsen violated
SCR 20:8.4(b), which states, “It is
professional misconduct for a lawyer to…commit
a criminal act that reflects adversely on the
lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness or fitness
as a lawyer in other respects.”
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By failing to notify in writing OLR and the
Clerk of the Supreme Court within five days
after his finding of guilt or conviction of
a crime, Attorney Olsen violated SCR
21.15(5), which states:
An attorney found guilty or convicted
of any crime on or after July 1, 2002, shall
notify in writing the office of lawyer
regulation and the clerk of the Supreme
Court within 5 days after the finding or
conviction, whichever first occurs. The
notice shall include the identity of the
attorney, the date of finding or conviction,
the offenses, and the jurisdiction. An
attorney’s failure to notify the office of
lawyer regulation and clerk of the supreme
court of being found guilty or his or her
conviction is misconduct.
SCR 21.15(5) is enforced under the Rules of
Professional Conduct for Attorneys via SCR
20:8.4(f), which states, “It is professional
misconduct for a lawyer to…violate a
statute, supreme court rule, supreme court
order or supreme court decision regulating
the conduct of lawyers.”
Second Matter
Effective at 4:30 p.m., on June 1,
2015, Olsen’s Wisconsin law license was
suspended pursuant to SCR 31.10(1) due to
his noncompliance with the 2013-2014
Wisconsin mandatory continuing legal
education (CLE) requirements. The
suspension followed notices sent to Olsen at
his then-address of record by the Board of
Bar Examiners (BBE) concerning his reporting
requirements and the automatic law license
suspension that would be imposed in the
event of noncompliance with those
requirements.
Olsen asserts that he was unaware of
his failure to comply with CLE reporting
requirements and his resultant suspension
from practice until June 11, 2015, when a
circuit court judge informed him that his
law license was suspended.
Olsen took steps to comply with CLE
requirements for the 2013-2014 reporting
period, and on June 12, 2015, he filed a
reinstatement petition with BBE. In his
reinstatement petition, Olsen listed at
least six instances in which he had
practiced law while suspended, including
participating in three separate status
conferences in Jefferson County, appearing
at a divorce hearing in Dodge County,
participating in settlement negotiations
regarding Jefferson County traffic matters,
and communicating with his client and
opposing party on multiple occasions in a
Jefferson County civil matter.
Upon receipt and review of his phone
records, Olsen also discovered that while
suspended, he had several phone
conversations with his clients and attorneys
pertaining to legal matters. Olsen
thereafter reported this information to OLR.
On June 12, 2015, Olsen was approved for
reinstatement by BBE pursuant to SCR
31.11(1) and (3), and he was reinstated that
day.
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By practicing law in Wisconsin at a time
when his Wisconsin law license was
administratively suspended for noncompliance
with mandatory CLE requirements, Olsen
violated SCR 31.10(1), which states:
If a lawyer fails to comply with the
attendance requirement of SCR 31.02, fails
to comply with the reporting requirement of
SCR 31.03(1), or fails to pay the late fee
under SCR 31.03(2), the board shall serve a
notice of noncompliance on the lawyer. This
notice shall advise the lawyer that the
lawyer’s state bar membership shall be
automatically suspended for failing to file
evidence of compliance or to pay the late
fee within 60 days after service of the
notice. The board shall certify the names
of all lawyers so suspended under this rule
to the clerk of the supreme court, all
supreme court justices, all court of appeals
and circuit court judges, all circuit court
commissioners appointed under SCR 75.02(1)
in this state, all circuit court clerks, all
juvenile court clerks, all registers in
probate, the executive director of the state
bar of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin State Public
Defender’s Office, and the clerks of the
federal district courts in Wisconsin. A
lawyer shall not engage in the practice of
law in Wisconsin while his or her state bar
membership is suspended under this
rule.
Violations of SCR 31.10(1) are enforced
under the Rules of Professional Conduct via
SCR 20:8.4(f), which states, “It is
professional misconduct for a lawyer to…
violate a statute, supreme court rule,
supreme court order or supreme court
decision regulating the conduct of lawyers.”
Prior Discipline
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Olsen was publicly reprimanded in 2011 based
upon reciprocal discipline under SCR
22.22(2) following a public censure received
in Colorado for failing to timely file a
stipulation on behalf of his client, in
violation of Colo. PRC 1.3. Olsen received
a private reprimand in 2013 for misconduct
in two separate matters, the first involving
a violation of SCR 10.03(6), enforced via
SCR 20:8.4(f) (practicing during dues
suspension), and the second involving a
violation of SCR 20:1.16(d).
In accordance with SCR 22.09(3), Attorney
Olsen is hereby publicly reprimanded.
Dated this 13th day of April, 2016.
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