Category Archives: Scott Brooksby

The Impact of Covid-19 on Aviation: The Economic, Social, Operational, and Litigation Fallout.

Scott Brooksby, the firm’s aviation litigation chair, travels the country giving speeches about the impact of Covid-19 on the airline industry.

Scott has produced a paper for those interested in information about the way Covid-19 has impacted aviation, including the economic, structural, social, and litigation impact of Covid-19 on the aviation industry.

You can download that paper here:

kristin olson and scott brooksby recognized in The Best Lawyers in America© for 2022

Olson Brooksby PC is pleased to announce that Kristin Olson and Scott Brooksby have once again been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America (2022).

Best Lawyers compiles its lists by conducting peer–review surveys to determine the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical region and legal practice area. 

Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Their methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.

After receiving more than 10,000,000 peer evaluations, Best Lawyers honored approximately 5% of practicing lawyers in the United States, exemplifying the work of the most elite and top-rated lawyers in the country.

Kristin Olson is listed in the practice areas of Commercial Litigation and Litigation-Insurance.

Scott Brooksby is listed in the practice areas of Commercial Litigation and Product Liability Litigation – Defendants

for the third year in a row, olson brooksby is included in U.S. News & World Report’s 2021 list of “best law firms”

Since 2019, Olson Brooksby has been included in U.S. News and World Report’s list of “Best Law Firms.”

In 2021, Olson Brooksby has the distinction of being selected by U.S. News for two separate practice areas in the Portland, Oregon regional law firm rankings: Commercial Litigation and Product Liability Litigation–Defendants.

Also in 2021, Scott Brooksby has been selected by his peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers® and The Best Lawyers in America© in two separate practice areas: Commercial Litigation and Product Liability Litigation–Defendants.

Previously, Scott Brooksby has been recognized by Best Lawyers and The Best Lawyers in America since 2018 for his work in Product Liability Litigation–Defendants. In 2021, Scott is recognized for his work in both Product Liability Litigation–Defendants and Commercial Litigation.

Kristin Olson has been selected by her peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers and The Best Lawyers in America since 2019 for her work in Commercial Litigation.

This is the third year in a row Olson Brooksby has been included in U.S. News and World Report’s list of “Best Law Firms”. 2021 is the first year that the litigation firm has been recognized for its work in two separate practice area categories: Commercial Litigation and Product Liability Litigation–Defendants.

Law firms that are included in the 2021 “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Receiving a tier designation reflects the high level of respect a firm has earned among other leading lawyers and clients in the same communities and the same practice areas for their abilities, their professionalism and their integrity.

Olson Brooksby top Portland litigation firm
Kristin Olson and Scott Brooksby honored once again by Best Lawyers in America

Kristin Olson and Scott Brooksby honored again by best lawyers in America (2021 edition)

Scott Brooksby and Kristin Olson are listed in the 2021 edition of the Best Lawyers in America© for product liability litigation and commercial litigation.  No more than 6% of private practice lawyers nationwide are selected for this honor, which is based purely on peer review.

Scott Brooksby is honored in two practice categories: commercial litigation and product liability, defendants. Kristin Olson is honored for her commercial litigation practice.

Scott Brooksby has been honored by Best Lawyers® since 2018. Kristin Olson has been honored by Best Lawyers® since 2019.

Best Lawyers® compiles its lists of outstanding attorneys by conducting peer-review surveys in which thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. The current edition of The Best Lawyers in America© 2021 highlights the top 6% of private practicing attorneys in the US. The 2021 Edition is based on more than 8 million evaluations in 147 practice areas.

The methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.

Scott Brooksby selected to super lawyers for the 12th year in a row

Scott Brooksby has been honored every year for his product liability defense practice since the Oregon Super Lawyers award’s inception in 2008. He was honored again for the 12th year in a row in 2020.

No more than 5% of the lawyers in Oregon are selected for this honor each year.

Super Lawyers selects attorneys using peer nominations and evaluations, combined with independent research. Each candidate is evaluated on the following indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement:

  • Verdicts/Settlements
  • Transactions
  • Representative Clients
  • Experience
  • Honors/Awards
  • Special licenses/certifications
  • Position within the law firm
  • Bar and/or professional activity
  • Pro bono and community service
  • Scholarly lectures/writings
  • Education/employment background

Congratulations and well deserved, Scott!

Olson Brooksby Featured in Eastmoreland Living Magazine

Olson Brooksby is so grateful to have been featured in Eastmoreland Living Magazine–a magazine for the residents of the beautiful Eastmoreland neighborhood in Portland. Thank you to Eastmoreland Living for featuring us and sharing a little bit about what we do, and thanks to Erin Fortin for taking the fabulous photos of us and our family.

The article explains how we ended up forming our law firm and why we love being litigators. The article ends with some general legal tips that we’ve shared with our clients over the years. Although people cannot entirely shield themselves from litigation, there are things you can do, such as buy plenty of insurance, to protect yourselves.

Olson Brooksby once again selected as one of the top litigation firms in Portland

Expertise has again recognized Olson Brooksby as one of the top litigation law firms in Portland, Oregon. Expertise selects attorneys based on more than 25 variables across the following five categories:

  1. Reputation: A history of delighted clients and outstanding service.
  2. Credibility: Building client confidence with licensing, accreditations, and awards.
  3. Experience: Masters of their craft, based on years of practical experience and education.
  4. Availability: Consistently approachable and responsive, so clients never feel ignored.
  5. Professionalism: Providing service with honesty, reliability, and respect.

Olson Brooksby has consistently been recognized each year by Expertise as one of the top 20 litigation firms in Portland, Oregon since 2016.

Expertise prides itself on only featuring businesses that have been identified by their research process as the best in their area. Finding the right highly-skilled professional takes significant time and effort, including in-depth research, detailed comparisons, and deciphering which online reviews are reliable and authentic. Expertise features only objectively quantified and qualified professionals who are hand-picked.

Scott Brooksby Selected as a 2019 Oregon Super Lawyer for Product Liability Defense


Scott Brooksby has been honored every year for his product liability defense practice since the Oregon Super Lawyers award’s inception in 2008. He was honored once again for the year 2019.

No more than 5% of the lawyers in Oregon are selected for this honor each year.

Super Lawyers selects attorneys using peer nominations and evaluations, combined with independent research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement:

  • Verdicts/Settlements
  • Transactions
  • Representative Clients
  • Experience
  • Honors/Awards
  • Special licenses/certifications
  • Position within the law firm
  • Bar and/or professional activity
  • Pro bono and community service
  • Scholarly lectures/writings
  • Education/employment background
  • Other outstanding achievements


Scott Brooksby and Kristin Olson recognized by Best Lawyers in America©

Scott Brooksby and Kristin Olson are listed in the 2019 edition of the Best Lawyers in America© for product liability litigation and commercial litigation, respectively.  No more than 5% of private practice lawyers nationwide are selected for this honor, which is based purely on peer review.

Best Lawyers® compiles its lists of outstanding attorneys by conducting peer-review surveys in which thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. The current edition of The Best Lawyers in America© 2019 is based on millions of detailed evaluations of lawyers by other lawyers.

The methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.

What Can Be Done About Pilot Depression, Suicide, and Other Flight Crew Mental Health Issues?

Scott Brooksby recently co-authored the article, “What Can Be Done About Pilot Depression, Suicide, and Other Flight Crew Mental Health Issues?” in a newsletter published by the American Bar Association, Mass Torts Litigation Section on November 9, 2017.

Mental health problems are nearing epidemic levels in the
developed world. According to the Centers for Disease Control
(CDC), suicide is the tenth leading cause of death and claims over
43,000 lives per year. Not surprisingly, if it is an issue in the
mainstream, you can bet it is a problem in the cockpit. It is true
that pilot mental fitness-and its connection to human factors
analysis-has always been a critical aspect of aviation safety, but
recent events suggest it is becoming even more important to
examine ways to identify mental health problems that may affect
pilot performance and safety in the cockpit. As Jet Blue founder
and former chief executive officer David Neeleman suggested,
“nobody ever thought about having to protect the passengers from
the pilots.”

In truth, most pilots would readily acknowledge that while the use
of medications to help mitigate the effects of mental illnesses has
been a hot button issue in aviation for some time, actual
evaluation of mental and emotional fitness in connection with
medical certification and continuing monitoring for symptoms has
not been a priority for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or
flight surgeons. In addition, the reliance on self-reporting by pilots
as part of the medical certification process, as well as the
confidentiality that protects doctors from disclosure, has created a
dangerous dynamic in the cockpit that can make it difficult for
aviation authorities and commercial carriers to vet and identify
these dangers before it is too late. Add to these factors, the
compelling incentive for pilots to hide mental health issues for fear
of losing their jobs and you have little chance of ever identifying
the problem, let alone getting pilots the help they need.

This article explores these pressing issues and whether it is realistic to think that merely asking a pilot during a flight physical how he or she feels, or how is the family, or whether any issues are troubling you, etc., will trigger a response that will reveal a mental deficiency.