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William K. Schwartz

• St. John's University - Bachelor of Arts, 1982

• Washington & Lee University School of Law
Juris Doctor, Law, 1988

• Owner, Harvit & Schwartz, L.C., 1997 - 2019
This was one of the leading West Virginia law firms representing injured workers diagnosed with mesothelioma, lung cancer, leukemia, silicosis and other cancers and  diseases caused by exposure to asbestos, benzene and other toxic substances. Mr.  Schwartz represented workers in all types of claims, including victims of the Sago and  Upper Big Branch Mine disasters. He also obtained precedent setting verdicts against  Union Carbide and DuPont in asbestos litigation.



 

Bill Schwartz for Supreme Court.jpg

Bill is an attorney who has practiced law and has been representing injured workers and families for over 33 years in West Virginia. He has obtained precedent setting verdicts for victims of mesothelioma beginning in 1992 with a 3.2 million dollar verdict for a glass worker and later participated in a verdict of over 6 million dollars against a chemical company as well as representing other personal injury claimants. He also obtained a verdict finding West Virginia Union Carbide facilities unsafe for workers between the years 1940 until 1980 and obtained a punitive multiplier regarding asbestos exposure. These and other verdicts resulted in settlements of millions of dollars for West Virginia workers and families suffering from avoidable injuries and deaths over the years. He was also involved in the drafting of a Case Management Order and legislation regarding asbestos exposure litigation in West Virginia.


Other attorneys have consistently recommended him as a reputable and effective litigator. In fact, Benchmark Litigation identified him as "one of the preeminent Plaintiffs litigation practitioners in the country” and the National Trial Lawyers rated him as a Top 100 lawyer. He has been a speaker at seminars for lawyers across the country and has also lectured on law at West Virginia State University. He was also a member of the National Asbestos/Mesothelioma Trial Lawyers Association as well as the Executive Committee for the West Virginia Association for Justice where he received the President’s Award. The Governor’s Panel of legal and business leaders recommended him for appointment as a Justice to a vacancy on the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. Most recently he was a candidate for that same office.


In addition to his legal work he has supported philanthropic causes including helping create and sponsor the Breath of Life organization raising over $100,000 for cancer research. As a former college athlete and father of athletes he created and sponsored the Capital High School Cross Country Invitational that welcomed hundreds of student athletes each year for many years. He is proud that both his sons became sons of Marshall University. He also provided health care workers at medical facilities around the state with personal protective masks during the pandemic.


Bill has practiced in courts around the state of West Virginia and assisted other lawyers in Texas, Baltimore and San Francisco. He has also been admitted in Kentucky, the District of Columbia and federal courts including the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.

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