Erik Christiansen portrait
  • Adjunct Professor, College Of Law - Dean
  • Adjunct Professor, College Of Law

Biography

Professor Christiansen is a 1990 graduate of the S.J. Quinney College of Law.  Professor Christiansen was an Articles Editor for the Utah Law Review and a William H. Leary Scholar.  He was an associate in the Los Angeles office of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy from 1990 to 1993, and an associate in the Los Angeles office of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan from 1993 to 1995.  Professor Christiansen joined the Salt Lake City office of Parsons Behle & Latimer in 1996 and is a shareholder at Parsons Behle & Latimer.  He is resident in the Salt Lake City office.  Professor Christiansen is the President of the Utah State Bar, and the Past Chair of the Utah State Bar Litigation Section. Professor Christiansen will be joining the Board of Governors of the American Bar Association in August 2024. Professor Christiansen is the Past Chair of the Utah Securities Commission, which oversees the Utah Division of Securities. He is Chambers USA rated in General Commercial Litigation, a Sustaining LIfe Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, is a Past Member of the ABA Litigation Section Membership & Marketing Committee, is a Team Editor of the ABA Litigation Section's Litigation News, is the regional cochair-Utah for the ABA's Judicial Intern Opportunity Program, is a member of the ABA Presidential Standing Committee on Membership, is the ABA Utah State Membership Chair, serves on the ABA House of Delegates Select Committee, is a past Chair of the Utah State Bar Securities Section, is a past Chair of the Utah Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, and is recognized in the Best Lawyers in America and the Mountain States Super Lawyers.  Professor Christiansen is a Utah State Bar Delegate to the ABA House of Delegates. Professor Christiansen has been actively involved in community affairs, including as the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Visit Salt Lake; Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art; Chair of the University of Utah Board of Advisors for Undergraduate Education; Chair of the University of Utah Young Alumni Association; a member of the Board of Trustees for KRCL 90.9 FM; a member of the Board of Trustees for the International Sculpture Center; a member of the Executive Committee and Board of Trustees of the Utah Film Center; a member of the Salt Lake County Arts and Culture Advisory Board; and a member of the Board of Trustees for the S.J. Quinney College of Law. In 2019, Professor Christiansen was selected as Alumnus of the Year by the S.J. Quinney College of Law.  He is a prolific writer, publishing numerous articles in the ABA's Litigation Journal and ABA's Litigation News. He is married to Professor Christina M. Jepson. He and his wife have four children.