Oklahoma has added a new administrative law judge position, and a workers' compensation defense attorney will fill the slot next month.

John Blodgett
(Ted Leslie photo)

The state Workers' Compensation Commission announced Thursday that John Blodgett will be sworn in Sept. 3 and will work in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa offices.

“We continuously review our case volume, and it was clear we knew we could improve our service to the people of Oklahoma by adding another ALJ position,” Commission Chairman Mark Liotta said in an emailed statement.

Blodgett has practiced comp defense for the past decade with the Ted Leslie firm in Edmond. He also has represented claimants, the announcement said.

“He has the right experience and the right temperament to fill that position,” Liotta said.

Blodgett will be the sixth ALJ at the commission. He will report to Chief Judge Shane Curtin and the three commissioners. He received his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Cameron University, and his law degree from the University of Oklahoma. He lives in Norman with his wife, Holly, and two daughters.

Oklahoma’s workers’ compensation system was reformed in 2013, when the Legislature created the Workers’ Compensation Commission and the system of comp judges.