Susan Vanderweert

“I love helping people resolve issues that are holding them back, and working toward helping them move forward with their lives. I am a good listener with a lot of life experience that helps me relate to people and understand their needs.”

- Susan Vanderweert

Susan.Vanderweert@farrin.com

919-328-5878

North Carolina State Bar Board Certfied Specialist Workers' Compensation Law Logo

North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist – Workers’ Compensation Law

Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Logo

Received Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Rating,3 2024

Best Lawyers in America 2025 Logo

Named to “Best Lawyers”4 list for Workers’ Compensation by Best Lawyers in America, 2021-2025

Attorney Susan Vanderweert (Partner)


Susan Vanderweert joined the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin in 2015 handling Workers’ Compensation cases, and is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation law. She is also a Partner of the firm.

Prior to joining the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin, she represented the other side – insurance companies and employers – for more than 10 years.

Susan earned her J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law at Chapel Hill, where she was Editor-in-Chief for the North Carolina Journal of International Law and Commercial Regulation. She earned an M.A. in Liberal Studies from Duke University and a B.A. from the University of Minnesota Duluth, where she double majored in Political Science and Communication.

I love helping people resolve issues that are holding them back, and working toward helping them move forward with their lives. I am a good listener with a lot of life experience that helps me relate to people and understand their needs.

Throughout Susan’s career she has practiced in the areas of Appellate Advocacy, Insurance Regulatory Matters, and Workers’ Compensation. While she has worked in a variety of capacities – journalism, public relations, and managing a variety of nonprofit professional associations and trade groups – nothing comes close to the satisfaction she gets from helping injured workers.

“I remember one case that is particularly near and dear to my heart. I was able to help a 60-year-old injured worker obtain enough compensation so that he could buy a house straight out. This enabled him to finally relax without ever having to worry about having a roof over his head.” 1

Susan authored “Seeking Justice for ‘Comfort’ Women: Without an International Criminal Court, Suits Brought by World War II Sex Slaves of the Japanese Army May Find Their Best Hope of Success in U.S. Federal Courts,” Volume 27, Issue 1 of the North Carolina Journal of International Law and Commercial Regulation.

In both her personal and professional life, Susan is a compassionate advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves. In 2024, the North Carolina Bar Association awarded Susan a Citizen Lawyer Award for her volunteer efforts with “worthy community or civic causes to improve the quality of life of those in their local or statewide communities.”

Susan has committed much time and energy to Best Friend Pet Adoption, an all-breed, all foster dog and cat rescue organization based in Wake County. She has also volunteered with Campbell Law Connections, a Wake County Bar Association mentorship program that pairs law students with practicing attorneys. And as a Wake County Bar Association Endowment Fund Committee member, Susan has helped select deserving students for law school scholarships.

Susan’s efforts to help others extend outside her local community, as well. She has supported and helped care for a child in Africa and a child in Asia for many years through sponsorships with Global Vision and Child Fund International.

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Licensed In

  • North Carolina

Practice Area

Honors/Awards/
Accomplishments

  • “Best Lawyers” list4 for Workers’ Compensation by Best Lawyers in America, 2021 – 2025
  • North Carolina Bar Association Citizen Lawyer Award, 2024
  • 1999 Gressman-Pollitt Award for Outstanding Oral Advocacy – Best Appellee
  • Martindale-Hubbell AV Pre-eminent Rating,4 2024
    Martindale-Hubbard Preeminent Rating 2024

Memberships

  • North Carolina Bar Association
  • Wake County Bar Association – Endowment Scholarship Committee
  • Certified Workers’ Compensation Specialist, Board of Legal Specialization of the North Carolina State Bar (original certification 2015, recertified 2020)
  • North Carolina Advocates for Justice
  • North Carolina Bar Workers’ Compensation Section Council, 2021-2022

Community & Civic Involvement

  • Best Friend Pet Adoption – Legal Advisor
  • Campbell Law Connections Mentorship Program

Law School

University of North Carolina School of Law
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
2002 J.D.

Graduate School

Duke University
Durham, North Carolina
1999 M.A. in Liberal Studies

  • Attended Exeter College, Oxford University, July 1995. Summer Programme in English Literature

College

University of Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
1979 B.A. in Political Science and Communication (double major)

  • News Director, UMD college radio station
  • Interned at CBS-affiliate radio-television station; hired as weekend radio news director

specialization

Board Certified Specialist, NC State Bar, WC

Workers’ Compensation
Board of Legal Specialization, North Carolina State Bar

five star review badge Former Workers’ Compensation Client Online Facebook Review
Susan Vanderweert was my attorney
Susan Vanderweert was my attorney, and she was phenomenal! She made my mediation painless, and she worked really hard for me to get the best possible settlement … I would recommend James Scott Farrin if you need representation. They are awesome! 1
five star review badge Workers’ Comp Client, Google Review1
I want to thank everybody who worked on my case at James Scott Farrin.
I would recommend them to anybody that was ever looking for a lawyer, and I definitely would use them again.

For legal reasons and client confidentiality, reviews have been slightly edited to remove identifying information and correct typos.

 

 

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