Michael Olivas Dies at 71

The AAUP notes with sadness the death of Michael A. Olivas on April 21 at the age of seventy-one. Olivas, who served as the Association's general counsel from 1994 to 1998 and on AAUP and AAUP Foundation committees that benefited from his legal expertise, was William B. Bates Distinguished Chair in Law Emeritus at the University of Houston Law Center.

Upon learning of his death, current AAUP general counsel Risa Lieberwitz said, "Michael Olivas was deeply committed to the AAUP and the principles of academic freedom and shared governance. His many years of service included significant contributions through his roles as AAUP general counsel and as a member of the AAUP Litigation Committee and the AAUP Foundation Legal Defense Fund board. On a personal level, I greatly appreciated the dedication and energy that he always brought to his work with the AAUP." 

A notice on the University of Houston Law Center website provides a summary of Olivas's legal accomplishments in the areas of higher education, affirmative action, and immigration law. Reporting on Olivas's death, Inside Higher Ed shared links to several of his opinion pieces, including reflections from January 2022 on recent litigation targeting affirmative action.