Norfolk Southern names a new executive vice president

Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) promoted Vanessa Allen Sutherland to executive vice president and chief legal officer, effective April 1.

Allen Sutherland had just been promoted to senior vice president of government relations and chief legal officer last August. In that role, she worked to develop relationships with federal, state and local stakeholders. She joined Norfolk Southern (NS) in 2018 as vice president of law, and in that role, she led a review of the NS safety program, managed government relations initiatives, introduced automation at multiple levels with the law team and collaborated with peers on short line railroad matters, NS said. 

“Vanessa is an invaluable contributor to NS, with important responsibilities across a number of areas critical to our company’s success,” NS CEO James A. Squires said. “Most recently, Vanessa has been playing an integral role in helping NS navigate the economic, political and regulatory environment. We thank her for her hard work and commitment to ensuring that our company continues to deliver superior returns for investors, and outstanding service to customers, while keeping our employees and communities safe.”