Montesano, Elizabeth

Melissa Minton Schmidt was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1967. She earned her Bachelors degree in 1991 from the University of Kansas and her Juris Doctorate in 1994 from the University of Tulsa. Ms. Schmidt was admitted to the Oklahoma Bar Association in 1994. She is currently admitted to practice in all state and federal district courts in Oklahoma. She is a member of the Oklahoma and Tulsa County Bar Associations, the Oklahoma Association of Defense Counsel, and the Defense Research Institute. She has attended the Defense Counsel Trial Academy and she has been selected as an Outstanding Young Woman in America.

After graduating from law school, Ms. Schmidt came to work for the predecessor to Taylor, Ryan, Schmidt & Van Dalsem, P.C. She handles cases involving negligence and personal injury, uninsured motorist coverage, medical payment benefits, bad faith, property loss, products liability, fraud, indemnification, contract disputes, subrogation and workers’ compensation. Ms. Schmidt also handles declaratory judgment actions in federal court. Ms. Schmidt has served as the lead counsel in approximately 75 jury trials in state court.