Baddour Reappointed to NC Industrial Comm; Clement President of Alabama Agency

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has appointed Philip Baddour to a second six-year term as a full commissioner at the North Carolina Industrial Commission, which handles workers’ compensation claims disputes. If approved by the state General Assembly, his new term will begin May 1, 2023, the commission said in a bulletin.

Cooper appointed Baddour in 2017 to his first term as a commissioner, after he served as a deputy commissioner for 17 years. In 2019, Cooper designated Baddour as chairman of the commission. The chair serves at the pleasure of the governor..

Before joining the Industrial Commission, Baddour practiced law in his hometown of Goldsboro, North Carolina, from 1996 to 1999, primarily representing plaintiffs in workers’ compensation and tort litigation. In 1999, he worked as an assistant state attorney general, defending state agencies in workers’ comp and tort claims. Baddour also previously served as a JAG officer in the North Carolina National Guard.

Baddour received his B.A. degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1992 and earned his law degree from Campbell University in 1996.

Also this month, Elias Admassu started as deputy commissioner, beginning Feb. 27, the commission announced. Deputy commissioners are the first step in hearing claims disputes, before claims can be appealed to the full commission.

Admassu litigated claims before the Industrial Commission from 2009 through 2020, representing employers and insurers. He also served in the North Carolina Division of Employment Security and as counsel to the state Department of Justice.

Most recently, Admassu was a special deputy attorney general, representing the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services in complex employment, labor, disability, and constitutional law litigation in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies.

Admassu earned his undergraduate degree from Howard University and his law degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law. He will be in the commission’s Raleigh office.

Byars/Wright Names Clement President

Byars/Wright Inc., a 77-year-old independent agency in Alabama, has named Gabe Clement president.

Clement, who joined the firm in 2014 as a broker, helped launch the Birmingham branch in 2019 and was named sales team leader in 2021, the agency said in a news release.

Previously, Haig Wright was the president and CEO of the agency but the two positions were recently separated, a company spokesperson said. Wright will remain CEO of the agency, alongside Clement, and will stay as CEO of the parent company, WRM Group, which was formed last year after the merger of Byars/Wright and Pritchett-Moore Insurance in Tuscaloosa.

Clement also serves on the Associated Builders and Contractors of Alabama Board of Directors and was awarded the Alabama Associated General Contractors of America 2020 Top 40 Under 40 In Construction.

Topics North Carolina Alabama