(Washington, DC, August 5, 2002) W. Scott Railton, a senior labor partner in the Falls Church office of Reed Smith LLP, has been nominated by President George W. Bush to serve on the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC) for the remainder of a six-year term expiring April 27, 2007. The three-member Commission is the independent federal agency that serves as the court system to adjudicate disputes between employers and employees and the Secretary of Labor, arising from contested workplace safety inspections.
“I am honored at the confidence President Bush has shown in me to be an impartial final arbiter of health and safety disputes at the federal level,” Railton said. “I look forward the opportunity to serve as an OSHRC Commissioner.”
Railton has been a partner at Reed Smith since 1977, specializing in safety and health matters, including occupational and mine safety and health for the private sector nationwide. He has served as safety and health counsel to a number of national corporations and represented employers in enforcement proceedings before federal and state courts and commissions. He has also represented major trade associations and corporations in standards promulgation proceedings, and has pursued appeals in such cases through the U.S. Courts of Appeal and to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“Reed Smith’s loss is truly our nation’s gain,” said Gregory B. Jordan, Reed Smith’s firmwide managing partner, of Railton’s nomination. “Scott has been a key member of the firm’s labor team, and we know he will be an outstanding OSHRC Commissioner.”
In 1971, prior to joining Reed Smith, Railton was one of four lawyers who founded the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Division of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor. From 1971 through 1972, he served as assistant counsel in charge of litigation for the Division. From 1972 to 1977 he served as Chief Counsel for the fledgling OSHRC, and was acting general counsel from 1975 to 1976.
Railton is the immediate past Co-Chairman for management of the Occupational Safety & Health Committee of the American Bar Association. He is a Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and is past Chairman of the Employment and Labor Law Committee of the National Association of Manufacturers.
n honors graduate of the George Washington University School of Law, Railton holds a BS in electrical engineering from the University of Washington. He is author of the legal chapter in The Occupational Environment – Its Evaluation and Control, a text recently published by the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA).
Railton also serves as the legal columnist for The Synergist, a publication of the AIHA. He often serves as a guest speaker at conventions and annual meetings of health-and-safety-related organizations.
The nominee is a member of the Virginia, Maryland and District of Columbia Bars and is listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who In The World.
Confirmation of Railton’s appointment to the OSHRC is pending in the U.S. Senate.
Reed Smith LLP, a leading global law firm with more than 700 lawyers located in 11 U.S. and two U.K. cities, represents Fortune 100 as well as mid-market and emerging companies. Clients include technology companies and entrepreneurs, financial services firms, healthcare providers and insurers, communications and telecommunications companies, manufacturers, universities, nonprofit organizations, real estate developers, and municipalities throughout the United States and in 40 countries. For more information visit www.reedsmith.com.