Patrick L. Biggam

I have been practicing law in Vermont since 1979 and am a founding partner of the firm. I take great satisfaction in fighting for injured workers or accident victims who are being treated unfairly by insurance companies. Before starting my legal career, I worked in many different job settings. I was a schoolteacher, hospital aide, factory worker, construction laborer, and farm hand. I understand the difficulties that face workers in these different job sites, and the problems that arise when you are injured. One important legal issue I helped clarify was the right to vocational rehabilitation for injured workers. When my client was denied any meaningful vocational rehabilitation to return her to work, through an unjust interpretation of the law by the Department of Labor, I took her case to the Vermont Supreme Court. We won the case, and our client was able to get her Master’s degree in counseling paid for by the insurance company. Even more importantly, the decision changed the way the Department of Labor treated all other injured employees in Vermont receiving vocational rehabilitation services. I value education and family safety, and over the years I have advocated for improvements in our workers’ compensation system and personal injury laws. I am past president of Vermont Attorneys for Justice, and have worked closely with the Vermont legislature to make these improvements.