Holly Remington Rao

Holly Remington Rao is a senior partner at Olenn & Penza, LLP with more than 35 years of civil litigation experience. Her practice focuses primarily on insurance defense, insurance coverage, professional negligence, construction, and personal injury. She represents insurance companies and insureds in complex coverage disputes and handles professional negligence defense, construction-related injury and wrongful death claims, liquor liability, and dram shop matters. Her work involves significant litigation, risk-transfer issues, liability questions, and complex insurance policies.

Holly earned a B.S. from Boston College and a J.D. from Franklin Pierce Law Center. Early in her career, she served as a law clerk to U.S. Magistrate Frederick R. DeCesaris from 1986 to 1988. Her academic and clerkship background provided a foundation in legal analysis, court procedure, research, and written advocacy. She is admitted in Rhode Island and Massachusetts courts and before federal courts, including the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Holly’s construction litigation experience includes injury and wrongful death claims involving worksite safety, oversight, training, defective design and construction, negligent maintenance, contribution, indemnity, and insurance issues. Her professional negligence work includes defending lawyers sued for malpractice. She also handles coverage cases involving substantial policies issued to construction companies, engineers, pharmacies, nightclubs, attorneys, and personal lines insureds. In addition, she serves as an approved guardian ad litem, mediator, and arbitrator for the Rhode Island Superior Court.

Holly Remington Rao has held leadership roles within the Rhode Island Bar Association, including work with its Insurance Programs Committee, House of Delegates, and Executive Committee. She belongs to the International Association of Defense Counsel and the Justinian Law Society of Rhode Island and formerly served on the Defense Counsel of Rhode Island board. Her practice combines insurance, professional liability, construction, and injury litigation with court-appointed neutral and guardian roles requiring experienced judgment in complex disputes.

Law Office Affiliations

• Senior Partner, Olenn & Penza, LLP
• Member, Rhode Island Bar Association
• Member, Massachusetts Bar Association
• Member, Justinian Law Society of Rhode Island
• Former Board Member, Defense Counsel of Rhode Island
• Member, International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)

Licensed State

• Rhode Island
• Massachusetts

Education

• Franklin Pierce Law Center
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• Boston College
  Bachelor of Science (BS)

Awards & Badges