Brooke Oliver

Brooke is a nationally recognized art and entertainment attorney with more than 30 years of experience advocating for artists, nonprofits, and social justice causes. A Martindale-Hubbell AV® rated lawyer since 1998, she founded and led the pioneering firm 50 Balmy Law for nearly three decades.

A leading authority on the Visual Artists Rights Act, Brooke has been called “a folk hero of copyright law” for her groundbreaking victories on behalf of visual artists. Her high-profile work includes arguing Dykes on Bikes trademark cases before the U.S. Supreme Court, twice securing historic wins for LGBTQ+ rights. She also led the legal strategy behind Burning Man’s transition to nonprofit status and negotiated precedent-setting VARA settlements, including the restoration of Judy Baca’s iconic Hitting the Wall mural.

Brooke has advised cultural and advocacy organizations such as the Dolores Huerta Foundation, San Francisco Pride, and the SF Gay Men’s Chorus. Earlier in her career she spent seven years with an angel investor.

Bilingual in Spanish and deeply rooted in community activism, she and her wife co-founded Que Viva!, a Burning Man theme camp that unites artists and changemakers. Her leadership has been formally recognized by the City of San Francisco and the California State Senate.