Practice Areas: Personal Injury, Criminal Defense, Estate & Trust Litigation; view more
Licensed in Virginia since: 1982
Education: University of Richmond School of Law
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2006 - 2024 Details
As a partner at Ferris & Eakin, P.C., located in Roanoke, Virginia, Raphael E. "Ray" Ferris handles criminal and civil litigation for clients in Roanoke and the surrounding communities. Ray's primary areas of focus include personal injury/wrongful death litigation, estate planning, administration and litigation and criminal and traffic defense. His experience as a former prosecutor enriches the perspective that Ray brings to his criminal defense practice.
Ray graduated from Roanoke College with a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1976 and subsequently enrolled in the University of Richmond School of Law, from where he earned his Juris Doctor in 1982. Admitted to practice in Virginia, he is also admitted to practice before the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Virginia and the Supreme Court of the United States.
Always seeking to stay current with developments in his practice areas, Mr. Ferris is an active participant in several professional organizations, including the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, the American Association for Justice, the Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association. Between 1998 and 2002, he served on the Board of Governors for the Criminal Law Section of the Virginia State Bar.
Formerly on the faculty of the Virginia State Bar Harry L. Carrico Professionalism Course, Mr. Ferris has been listed in Best Lawyers in America*, has a BV Distinguished** rating from Martindale-Hubbell and has been identified by Virginia Business Magazine as a member of Virginia's "Legal Elite." He is a former member of the Roanoke City Council, where he served as Chair of both the Roanoke Valley Transportation Planning Organization and the City Council's Legislative Committee. Mr. Ferris is a Paul Harris Fellow and an active member of the Rotary Club of Roanoke Valley.
*The Best Lawyers in America® 2010. Copyright 2009 by Woodward/White, Inc., Aiken, SC
"*AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards."
Practice areas
Personal Injury - General: Plaintiff, Criminal Defense, Estate & Trust LitigationFocus areas
Animal Bites, Arrest & Arraignment, Assault, Assault & Battery, Brain Injury, Criminal Fraud, Criminal Law, Drug & Alcohol Violations, Expungement, Felony, Misdemeanor, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Motor Vehicle Offenses, Murder, Personal Injury - Plaintiff, Premises Liability - Plaintiff, Theft, Traffic Violations, Trucking Accidents, Will Contests, Wrongful Death
- 50% Personal Injury - General: Plaintiff
- 30% Criminal Defense
- 20% Estate & Trust Litigation
First Admitted: 1982, Virginia
Professional Webpage: http://www.roanokevirginialaw.com/ray-ferris-attorney-roanok...
- Criminal and Traffic law, VTLA and VSB
- I served on Roanoke City Council from July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2018.
- Roanoke City Council member, elected in 2010 and again in 2014, which term ended on June 30, 2018.
- I represent court appointed clients in the Roanoke County and Salem courts. I also perform pro bono services for Blue Ridge Legal Services, Inc.
- Member, Roanoke Valley Rotary Club & a Paul Harris Fellow
- Member, Virginia Trial Lawyers Association
- Roanoke Law Foundation Fellow, 2015
- Member, ABA
- American Association for Justice
- Member, Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys
- Former Faculty Member, Virginia State Bar Professionalism Course
- National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys
- Former Member, Va. State Bar Criminal Law Section Board of Governors, 1998-2002
- University of Richmond, TC Williams School of Law, JD, 1982
- Roanoke College, B.B.A., 1976
- Plaintiff, a student at a Virginia public university, tied her hammock to two concrete columns in an open, public area on campus. One of the 800 pound columns fell on her, crushing her abdomen and pelvis. Plaintiff was flown to MCV in Richmond where she underwent several surgeries to repair her bilateral open-book pelvic fracture, tears and hemorrhage to her omentum and colon, and an acetabular fracture. Plaintiff had a difficult recovery, during which she endured 19 surgeries. Counsel for the plaintiff, Raphael Ferris and Lenden Eakin, and the Attorney General’s office agreed to a collaborative approach to resolving the claim, and a settlement proposal along with several supplements were sent to attorneys for the commonwealth. After approximately five hours of mediation, the case settled for $1,600,000. https://valawyersweekly.com/2018/08/24/student-hurt-when-column-at-state-school-fell-on-her-1-6-million-settlement/, 2018
- Settlement of a wrongful death matter involving a 56 year old self-employed logger involved in motor vehicle accident with a defendant fleeing the police. https://valawyersweekly.com/2019/08/23/man-killed-in-wreck-with-speeder-chased-by-cops/, 2018
Selections
- Super Lawyers: 2006 - 2024
