PAUL W. SCHMIDT is a Partner at Covington & Burling LLP in Washington, DC.  Mr. Schmidt represents clients in all aspects of complex multidistrict and individual cases involving pharmaceutical product-liability and consumer protection claims, obtaining successes at both the appellate and trial court levels.  In addition, he regularly advises clients on pharmaceutical liability risks before litigation arises.  Mr. Schmidt graduated magna cum laude from New York University School of Law in 1998.