Richard N. "Rick" Shapiro

Richard Shapiro served as a law clerk to Federal District Court Judge Robert G. Doumar in Norfolk, and now exclusively handles injury law. He co-authored “Railroad Health & Safety; a Litigator’s Guide” which appears in a leading law encyclopedia, “American Jurisprudence Trials”, and is Board Certified in Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Legal Specialty Certification of Massachusetts (ABA Accredited).

Rick was elected chair of the Railroad Law Section of the American Association for Justice (AAJ) for two terms and has lectured on evidence law to the AAJ, VTLA, and Georgia TLA, as well as to Virginia lawyers. Rick is also a Virginia "Super Lawyer" (since 2010) and possesses an "A V" Rating by Martindale-Hubbell, one of the most respected legal rating services in the country.

Prominent Cases Rick Has Litigated During His Career

• Muhammad v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., No. 18-1695 (4th Cir. June 4, 2019) (Link to Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals opinion reinstating a FELA lawsuit in favor of Rick's client)
• Ratliff v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., 2009 WL 649268 (March 12, 2009) (Link to WV Supreme Court Opinion)
• Payne v. CSX Transportation, Inc., No. 2-231-07, (Dec. 27, 2013)
• Bilenky v. Ryobi Technologies, Inc., et.al, No. 2:13-cv-00345 (E.D. Va. June 26, 2015)

Publications

• Railroad Health & Safety; a Litigator’s Guide, Co-Author, 72 Am. Jur. Trials, p.1 (West).
• Using Medical Evidence to Maximize Personal Injury Case Damages, The Journal of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, Vol. 21, No. 1, 39-46 (2009).
• Statistics Evidence in Injury Cases: Excluding It or Infusing It in Direct Exam? The Journal of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, Volume 23, No. 2, 3-6 (2012).
• Author and Editor for three health and safety blogs on The Legal Examiner.
• Featured Author and Editor of the Top 10 Civil Justice Stories, The Legal Examiner (since 2015)

Admitted to Practice Law in the Following Jurisdictions

• Virginia
• North Carolina
• West Virginia
• Washington, D.C.
• U.S. Supreme Court

Practice Areas

• Car accidents
• Wrongful death
• Accidents involving 18-wheelers
• Railroad worker injuries and disease claims
• Bike accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Medical malpractice