The Association of American Railroads (AAR) honored the late Scott Carey of BatesCarey LLP with the 2017 David W. Fries Award for exemplary risk management efforts and practices in the railroad industry. The award was presented to his wife, Patricia, and oldest daughter, Ashley, at the Railroad Insurance Management Association’s (RIMA) annual meeting recently held in Washington, DC.

“It is with mixed emotions that I present this year’s David W. Fries Award,” said Kevin Burrin of BNSF, Chair of the David W. Fries Award Nominating Committee. “While I am pleased to be honoring such a deserving individual, I am saddened that I don’t have the opportunity to congratulate him personally and shake his hand one more time due to his untimely passing earlier this year. For almost 40 years, Scott Carey was at the forefront of transportation and railroad liability claims. He was a guiding force in his law firm, BatesCarey LLP, becoming one of the most prestigious and highly regarded transportation coverage firms in the nation. He wrote or edited much of the policy language used by the railroad industry, ensuring his legacy will continue for many years.”

For nearly four decades, Scott Carey was at the lead of risk management in the rail and transit industry through is role within and supporting the insurance industry. He served as the Standing Claims Counsel for both RAIL and TRAC, which provided critical risk management services to railroads for about 25 years. Carey’s long-career tracked with significant changes and challenges in railroading that he ably helped clients across the industry navigate and thrive.

The David W. Fries Award is sponsored by the Railroad Insurance Management Association (RIMA), an association of railroad risk managers that is overseen by a board of elected officers from the railroad community and administered by the AAR. The award was established in honor of the late David W. Fries who served as director of risk management for the Norfolk Southern Railway and was a past president and officer of RIMA. His dedication to the field of risk management and risk issues in the rail industry serves as the foundation for establishing this award.