It is extremely rewarding to be able to offer clients the strategically beneficial option of collective or group (“class-like”) action also beyond the U.S. We constantly break new ground in countries around the world that have not yet fully embraced or adopted group actions in securities, antitrust, consumer, privacy or product liability matters. We are pioneers of sorts and take that role seriously.
Overview
Olav Haazen offers 25 years of experience representing both foreign and domestic plaintiffs in complex cross-border securities fraud, antitrust and collective consumer actions, three areas in which the firm is pioneering internationally.
A former professor of comparative civil procedure, Olav brings a deep understanding of how substantive and procedural laws differ across global jurisdictions, as well as how the litigation system in the US evolved, adopting procedural innovations and solutions. This background allows him to identify jurisdiction-specific strategies for clients and to clearly explain the nuances of foreign legal systems: how quickly proceedings move, what costs to expect, and why they can trust the neutrality and objectivity of the courts.
Olav’s international securities group actions are frequently the first of their kind in that jurisdiction, requiring navigation of untested legal terrain and resulting in landmark settlements. He represented a class of Fortis investors, helping to negotiate a record-setting high €1.3 billion settlement of all investment fraud claims in the Netherlands and Belgium. He then surpassed that record in the Steinhoff litigation, with a €1.4 billion global settlement on behalf of multiple groups of institutional investors.
The International group’s other landmark achievements include:
The Royal Dutch Shell settlement ($450 million), one of the earliest cross-border securities resolutions in Europe;
The first securities case of its kind in Japan, settled for ¥1 billion;
The Cyprus case, representing nearly 1,000 investors, which established significant precedent in international investment arbitration, affirming that mass claims could proceed in the ICSID forum; and
Various confidential securities settlements in Germany, France and Japan.
Prior to joining G&E, Olav was counsel at a prominent national law firm, where he successfully represented major corporate clients and individuals in several high-profile RICO, securities, and government investigation matters and commercial disputes, including a well-known playwright against a civil forfeiture claim arising out of Kenneth Starr’s “Ponzi” scheme; a utilities company in a significant contract dispute with Enron; and one of the largest franchisors in professional sports in a $1.2 billion monopolization suit.
Some 600 institutional investors from around the world seeking recovery from Volkswagen in German court in connection with its well-publicized manipulation of emissions controls;
A large group of Laiki and Bank of Cyprus bondholders and depositors with ICSID arbitration claims against Cyprus, whose interests were wiped as part of the 2013 Cyprus bank bail-out;
Foreign Madoff investors on fraud and negligence claims against feeder fund defendants and their auditors, custodians, and administrators;
A French qui tam plaintiff in litigation arising out of the sale of Executive Life Insurance Company; and
A large regional bakery in its successful monopolization suit against a competitor.
Represented two classes of professional fashion models in price-fixing and consumer fraud actions, which resulted in a virtually unprecedented 100% recovery of all claimants’ losses, as well as substantial injunctive relief, which Justice Ramos of the New York Supreme Court lauded as a model for legislative reform.
Before coming to G&E, Olav also represented several government entities and officials, including a Westchester County municipality in a $600 million lawsuit by Donald Trump’s Seven Springs LLC, as well as the City and Mayor of Amsterdam, and a foreign country’s former Secretary of State.
Credentials
Education
Harvard Law School (LLM, 1997)
Oxford University (M.Jur, 1994)
Leiden University (Law, Clavareau Prize, 1993)
Tilburg University (SJD, with highest honors, 2001)
Admissions
New York
England and Wales
US Supreme Court
US Court of Appealsfor the 1st Circuit
US Court of Appealsfor the 2nd Circuit
US Court of Appealsfor the 4th Circuit
US Court of Appealsfor the 9th Circuit
US District Courtfor the Southern District ofNew York
US District Courtfor the Eastern District ofNew York
Netherlands Arbitration Institute
Recognitions
Super Lawyers, 2009-2025
Top Lawyers, 2016-2025
Top Attorneys, 2017-2025
National Law Journal’s Plaintiffs’ Lawyers Trailblazers, 2020
Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers, 2023-2025
Lawdragon 500 Global Plaintiff Lawyers, 2024-2025
Affiliations
Professional
Netherlands Reporter to the 17th International Congress of Comparative Law
American Bar Association, Standing Committee for Amicus Curiae, 2010-2011
Third-Party Litigation Funding Study Group, 2010-2011
Country Reporter for the Netherlands, European Restatement of Torts, 1996-2001
Community
Leiden University in the Netherlands, former professor of civil procedure and cross-border litigation
Teaching Fellow at Harvard, guest lecturer at Stanford and Oxford
Publications & Presentations
Publications
EU Privacy Protections Will Not Override U.S. Discovery Obligations, 2024
U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Permit U.S. Discovery in Non-U.S. Arbitrations, 2024
Favorable Danish Rulings in Litigation Efforts to Recover $1 Billion in Investor Losses in Danske Bank’s Money Laundering Scandal, 2024
UK Supreme Court Paves the Way for European Litigation Against European-Domiciled Companies for Conduct of Their Overseas Subsidiaries, 2022
Frankfurt Higher Regional Court Approves Settlement Proposal in Deutsche Telekom\ Securities Litigation, Germany’s First KapMuG Case, 2022
G&E Prepares for ICSID Hearing on Behalf of Victims of Cyprus’ 2013 Bank Deposits Expropriation, 2022
Australian Federal Appeals Court Unanimously Upholds Ruling for Investors on BHP Billiton Dismissal and Class Closure Motions, 2021
Expansion of Cross-Border Discovery, 2020
First Circuit to Rule on U.S. Interference with Foreign Class Actions, 2020
Australian Court Hears BHP Dismissal and Class Closure Motions, 2020
G&E Investigating Bondholder Claims Against Credit Suisse in Massive Wirecard Fraud, 2020
Vivendi Gearing Up for Trial – Again – in December, 2020
Most Foreign Investors Banned from Class Actions Must Act as Lead Plaintiff or Opt Out
Precedent-Setting Ruling Strengthens Netherlands as Forum-of-Choice for Global Class Actions, 2018
New York Courts Widen Options for Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, 2017
First Circuit to Rule on U.S. Interference with Foreign Class Actions, 2017
Case Law Settles on Sponsored ADRs Within US Regulatory Scope, 2017
German Court Appoints Model Claimant In Historic Volkswagen Case, 2017
Fortis Settlement Yields an Additional €100 Million, 2017
Tokyo Court Holds First Hearing in Shareholder Fraud Lawsuit Against Mitsubishi, 2017
Bondholder Fraud Litigation Against Banco Espírito Santo Forges Ahead (2017)
Postbank Shareholder Claims Against Deutsche Bank to be Filed as German Courts Issue First Findings, 2017
Toshiba Investor Litigation Ramps Up, 2017
Merits Memorial to Be Filed in Cyprus Bail-In Arbitration, 2017
Morrison’s ‘Clear’ Transactional Test After Toshiba – the Search for the Border between Domestic and Foreign Transactions in Complex Financial Instruments, 2016
