José A. Olivieri, J.D., Managing Partner, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP – Milwaukee
José A. Olivieri is the Managing Partner of the Milwaukee office of the full-service law firm Michael Best & Friedrich LLP. The Milwaukee office of Michael Best has 182 employees, including 136 professionals. Mr. Olivieri’s practice includes representing management in employment related matters and business immigration law. As leader of the firm’s Higher Education Practice, he also represents institutions of higher education and has assisted the governing Board of these institutions on a broad spectrum of legal matters.
Mr. Olivieri served as Chair of Michael Best’s Labor and Employment Relations Practice Group from 2007 to 2015. Comprised of more than 64 professionals, the group is one of the largest in Wisconsin and the Midwest. As Chair, he was responsible for budgeting, staffing, planning, and business development for the group. During his tenure, the group was consistently rated as the top labor and employment practice in Wisconsin by the highly-regarded legal publication Chambers USA. He was named the “Wisconsin Lawyer of the Year,” Employment Law – Management in The Best Lawyers in America 2018. Mr. Olivieri also established the firm’s Immigration and International Migration Practice, which now consists of nine professionals and has served as convener of Michael Best’s Higher Education Practice since its inception 26 years ago.
Outside of his legal practice, Mr. Olivieri has held a variety of leadership roles for local organizations. He served as Chair of the Board of Directors for over 20 years for the United Community Center, a civic organization with a $40 million dollar budget primarily serving Milwaukee’s Hispanic community. Mr. Olivieri is past Chair of various organizations, including the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, the Milwaukee Public Library Foundation, the Labor and Employment Law Section of the State Bar of Wisconsin, and the Milwaukee Forum, a group fostering communication between young leaders from diverse backgrounds. He is also a founding member and past president of the Wisconsin Hispanic Lawyers Association and has served on several additional boards over the years, including the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents, the Mount Mary University Board of Trustees, and the Milwaukee Area Advisory Board of U.S. Bank and past Chair of Carroll University’s Board of Trustees. Mr. Olivieri is currently Chair of the Board of Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin, a member on the Board of First Federal Bank of Wisconsin and Froedtert Health System.
Mr. Olivieri received his J.D. from Marquette University Law School in 1981, where he served as Articles Editor of the Marquette Law Review, and his B.A, cum laude, from Carroll University in 1978. A native of Puerto Rico, Mr. Olivieri is married to Wisconsin-born Jeanne Olivieri. The couple has three children (Elisa, Lucas and Elena) and two grandchildren (Maya and Alejandro).