James D. Oliver

Jim Oliver’s knowledge and experience is unusually broad – it includes a number of registered securities offerings, franchise offerings, mergers and acquisitions, and debt financings. In recent years, he has devoted most of his practice to counseling corporate clients and to the trial and appeal of complex business litigation. Jim enjoys Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory’s highest “AV” rating for lawyers and is listed in Chambers USA as a leading general commercial litigation attorney in the United States. He was selected by his peers for inclusion in the Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers® list and The Best Lawyers in America^® for the areas of commercial litigation and other categories as well. He was selected by Best Lawyers^® as the 2012, 2017, 2019, and 2022 Kansas City, Kansas-area Corporate “Lawyer of the Year” and as the 2013, 2017, and 2024 Kansas City, Kansas-area Appellate Practice “Lawyer of the Year.” He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. Jim is a member of the firm’s appellate and business practice groups.

Education

• Washburn University (J.D., 1975)
  cum laude; Editor - Washburn Law Journal
• Northwest Missouri State University (B.S., 1971)

Admissions

• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas
• U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri
• Kansas (1975)
• Missouri (2005)

• Appellate Law
• Litigation & Disputes
• Securities & Corporate Finance
• Antitrust & Trade Regulation
• Franchise & Distribution
• Business & Corporate Law
• Administrative/Regulatory

• Franchise & Distribution

• Kansas Humanities Council, Past Board Member
• Goodwill Industries International, Inc., Board of Directors, 2002-08; Chairman of Research Committee
• Goodwill Industries & Easter Seals of Kansas, Past Chairman
• Goodwill Industries of Western Missouri & Eastern Kansas, Inc., Board of Directors, 2002-12
• Rotary Club of Topeka, 1998-2002; Topeka Rotary Foundation Trustee, 2001-02
• United Methodist Health Ministry Fund, Board of Trustees, 1997-99
• Kansas Children’s Service League, Advisory Council, 1997-98
• United Way of the Plains, Past Chair of Lawyers Division and Major Individual Gifts Division
• East Heights United Methodist Church (Wichita, KS), Past Chair of Ad. Board & Lay Leader
• United Methodist Church of the Resurrection (Leawood, KS), Church Council, 2008-2015, 2016-present; Church Council Chairman, 2011-2015; Board of Trustees, 2015; Lay Leader and Delegate to UMC Great Plains Conference, 2016-present; Disciple Bible Study Leader

• Jim Oliver is a respected appellate lawyer who has served as counsel in more than 150 appeals in state and federal courts, representing major corporations, individuals and small businesses, and the state of Kansas, New Mexico, and Colorado.

• Tenth Circuit Historical Society, President
• American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, Fellow
• Kansas Supreme Court Admissions Review Committee, Member and Chairman
• Recognized by Best Lawyers® as the 2012, 2017, 2019, and 2022 Kansas City-KS Corporate Law "Lawyer of the Year" and the 2013, 2017, and 2024 Kansas City-KS Appellate Practice “Lawyer of the Year”
• Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® in the areas of Appellate Practice, Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Corporate Law, Litigation – Antitrust, Litigation – Banking & Finance, Litigation – Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy), Litigation – Securities, Mining Law, and Securities/Capital Markets Law, 1999-2026
• Selected for inclusion in Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers® List, 2005, 2010-2025
• Identified by Chambers USA as a leading lawyer in the United States for Litigation: General Commercial, 2008-2022, and a Senior Statesperson in the area of Litigation: General Commercial, 2023-2025
• American Bar Association Member of Antitrust and Business Law Sections
• Kansas Bar Association - Past Member, Committee on Lawyer Specialization
• Johnson County Bar Association - Fellow, Johnson County Bar Foundation
• Topeka Bar Association - 1998-2002; Long-Range Planning Committee
• Wichita Bar Association - President 1996-1997; Ethics and Grievance Committee, 1992-1995; Outstanding Service Award, 1991
• President's Award, Wichita Bar Association, 1991
• American Bar Foundation - Fellow
• Kansas Bar Foundation - Board of Trustees 2002-2012; President 2010-2011
• Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers
• Committee on Conduct of Attorneys for US Dist. Ct. - District of Kansas, 1992-1995; Chairman, 1995-1996
• Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association - Managing Partners Committee
• Sedgwick County Law Library - Past Chairman
• Northwest Alumni Missouri State Alumni Association, Distinguished Alumni Award, 2026