Schmid, Melanie J.

Along with Ray Pajares, David Schexnaydre is a founding member of Pajares & Schexnaydre.  David enjoys a successful law practice in which he works primarily in the areas of products liability litigation, insurance defense litigation, and insurance coverage litigation.

As a products liability lawyer, David has represented manufacturers of elevators, escalators, man lifts, pharmaceutical products, household appliances, heating pads, motors, faucets, valves, ball cock assemblies, knife sharpeners, industrial paper roll handling equipment, exercise equipment, programmable industrial computers, high-precision automated machine tools, and spinal implants.

As an insurance defense lawyer, David represents insurance companies in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, including commercial general liability insurers (CGL insurers), automobile insurers, trucking insurers, bobtail insurers, garage liability insurers, and veterinary malpractice insurers, and has developed a particular focus on insurance coverage litigation and defending insurance companies against bad-faith claims handling practices claims.

As a vaccine injury lawyer, David represents individuals who have suffered adverse reactions to vaccines, inoculations, booster shots, flu shots, tetanus shots, HPV (Gardasil) vaccines, and other vaccinations.  These claims are filed with the United States Court of Federal Claims and are administered under the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.  David is a member of the bar of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, which is a prerequisite for handling cases in the vaccine court.

David is a Louisiana lawyer, Mississippi lawyer and Texas Lawyer.  He has tried jury trials to conclusion in both Louisiana and Mississippi.  He is admitted to practice in all Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas state courts, United States District Courts for the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Louisiana, United States District Courts for the Southern District of Mississippi, the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United States.  He is a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association, Mississippi State Bar Association, Texas Bar Association and Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel.  Having handled cases on Indian Reservations, David is also a member of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribal Court and the Coushatta Tribal Court.

David is a native of New Orleans and earned his high school diploma, college degree, and law school degree from respected educational institutions located in New Orleans.  He graduated cum laude from Tulane Law School in 1991 and was inducted into the National Order of the Barristers, an honor that is bestowed upon the top 10 oralists in the graduating law school class.  While at Tulane, David served on the Moot Court Board and was elected by his peers to the leadership position of Associate Justice.  He also served on the National Trial Team, representing Tulane Law School in trial competitions against law schools from around the country.  His advocacy skills also resulted in him being named Louisiana State Trial Competition Champion, after he and his trial partner defeated trial teams from LSU Law School, Loyola Law School, and Southern Law School. 

While at Tulane, David served his New Orleans community by working in the Juvenile Clinic, which provided free legal services to low-income and predominantly minority juveniles who were accused of committing criminal acts. Working closely with his clients, David earned a 100% success rate for his clinic cases that proceeded to trial.  Since graduating, David has returned to Tulane to serve as a Guest Lecturer and he also served as the Tulane National Moot Court Trial Team Coach for four years, during which the team won the Louisiana State Championship each year.

Prior to attending Tulane Law School, David earned his undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the University of New Orleans, where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Theta fraternity.  Before attending UNO, David was a National Honor Society graduate of Brother Martin High School, where he served as Junior Class President and Senior Class President after being elected by his fellow classmates two years in a row.  He also represented Brother Martin as a member of the tennis and basketball teams, and was an award winner in a competitive Spanish Literary Rally against other area high schools.  Finally, he was selected to represent Brother Martin in the annual Louisiana Boys State governmental educational program in the State's Capitol.

In addition to practicing law, David is a devoted husband and father who enjoys spending time with his family.  He is also an Ironman triathlete and a martial artist.