Finding an attorney who can handle jury cases in a range of different areas is always difficult, but very few manage to achieve such exceptional results as Olivier Taillieu. Distinguished and respected by his peers, he’s a light in the legal system. In Acquisition International’s ongoing look at leading advisors, we profile him in the light of being named Leading High-Stakes Litigation Attorney of the Year, California.
Based in California, it can be no surprise that Mr. Taillieu has become so highly regarded amongst his peers. His achievements speak for themselves, with high profile and high stakes cases being his specialities. For those who employ his services, the result is often incredibly successful. With numerous seven figure and higher verdicts and settlements under his belt, it’s worth seeing where he started in order to achieve such success.
Mr. Taillieu’s excellent record goes all the way back to his time at Arizona State University where he graduated Summa Cum Laude. Following this success, he moved swiftly to George Washington University Law School where he gained in JD in 1999, graduating first in class. Academia wasn’t his only priority, however, and he made time to hold the position of Managing Editor of the George Washington Law Review. Bestowed the prestigious Order of the Coif, it’s no surprise that he was on the right track.
Wishing to expand on his academic experience, Mr. Taillieu took a position clerking for the Honorable Lourdes G. Baird in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, and then for the Honorable A. Wallace Tashima on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Following this, he was able to develop his skills as a litigator, in the Los Angeles office of O’Melveny & Myers, LLP. These skills serve him and his clients to this day. Mr. Taillieu was quickly drawn to the field of injury law and has made it his speciality. Now, twenty years after graduating, he can comfortably claim to be a leader in the field.
This achievement is most clearly shown through his position, as he is currently the chief trial attorney at the Dominguez Firm. Since 1987 the firm has recovered over $700 million dollars for injured clients, and the hard work of Mr. Taillieu are a key part of that. The cases he has had to tackle are often complex, and frequently hard-fought. While the challenges are large, the rewards are equally so, and Mr. Taillieu has tried and won multiple jury cases in his prolific career. Tens of millions of dollars have been recovered or claimed thanks to his efforts.
Examples of Mr. Taillieu’s sterling work include a $29,000,000 verdict in a mild traumatic brain injury case involving a pedestrian, a $10,500,000 settlement in a truck versus bicycle accident and a $3,000,000 settlement for homeless client who suffered a crush injury to his foot against a world-renowned charitable organization. These cases are merely the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Mr. Taillieu’s work, but showcase the enormous ability that he has at his disposal.
Thanks to this hard work, Mr. Taillieu has been recognized by his peers as an exceptional advocate, being one of five finalists for the prestigious CAALA Trial Lawyer of the Year Award in 2017 and 2019. He has been selected six times to the Southern California Super Lawyers list and was an acclaimed “Lawyer of Distinction” in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. His memberships of organizations and honors are numerous, as he is part of the American Board of Trial Advocates, the Golden Key Honor Society, the Association of Business Trial Lawyers as well as the Consumer Attorney Association of Los Angeles and the Consumer Attorney Association of California. As he is a part of these groups, Mr. Taillieu is able to stay up to date with the latest in legal developments.
With such evident ability, Mr. Taillieu has made it his principle to share his knowledge with as many people in the industry as possible. He served as a panel speaker at the CAALA Las Vegas Conference in 2018 and 2019 and routinely serves as a faculty in the ABOTA trial skills program. With such success, there are few more qualified to talk to others about the field of TBI, trial skills and other related matters, and Mr. Taillieu frequently gives lectures and CLE presentations on these topics. His success as a litigator and as an attorney has given him a significant public profile when compared to his peers. He is a much sought-after guest on high-profile national and international television shows, including Good Morning America, Nightline, NBC Nightly News, The O’Reilly Factor, to name but a few.
In all, it’s understandable how Mr. Taillieu has managed to achieve such incredible success. Drawing on a long legal career, he truly stands apart as one of the most effective attorneys in the country. Despite achieving a degree of notoriety inside and outside his profession, the true measure of Mr. Taillieu’s success comes from his helping others, when they discover they are unable to help themselves.