Honorable R. Ferrell Newman named Chairman of the Commission

Press Release

Press Release Date

Chairman Ferrell R. Newman

[Richmond, VA]- Commissioner R. Ferrell Newman has been elected to a three-year term as Chairman of the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission (VWC), effective July 1, 2018. He succeeds Commissioner Wesley G. Marshall, whose term ended June 30, 2018. Commissioner Newman, Commissioner Marshall, and Commissioner Robert A. Rapaport., serve as appellate-level judges at the VWC and direct its operations and staff of 292.

Commissioner Newman was appointed by the General Assembly in 2013 and began his position with the VWC on March 11, 2013. A native of Richmond, Mr. Newman is a 1983 graduate of The College of William and Mary's Marshall Wythe School of Law and a 1979 graduate from the University of Richmond. His appointment as Commissioner follows a 30 year practice of law with a heavy concentration in workers’ compensation. In 2016, he was inducted as a Fellow in the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers.

 

About The Commission

The Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission (VWC), established in 1918, is an independent judicial and administrative state agency that oversees the workers’ compensation system for employees, employers, and insurers. VWC interprets and applies the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Act and resolves claims through hearings and mediation. A 2016 Oregon study ranked Virginia as the fifth-lowest cost system in the nation. Leading the way in electronic data and claims filing systems, in 2017 VWC processed over 48,000 claims and issued over 4,200 judicial opinions. VWC also administers the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund, the Uninsured Employer’s Fund, and adjudicates claims under the Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, VWC operates regional offices in Bristol, Virginia Beach, Roanoke, Harrisonburg, Manassas, and Fairfax.

 

For more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview, please call Charles Steepleton at 1-877-664-2566 or email questions@workcomp.virginia.gov.