Bio Filter Option
Morgan Lewis
  • Home
  • >
  • Paul A. Zevnik
Zevnik

Paul A. Zevnik

Partner

paul.zevnik@morganlewis.com

Washington DC Phone +1.202.739.5755 Fax +1.202.739.3001

1111 Pennsylvania Ave. NW//Washington, DC 20004-2541//United States

Los Angeles Phone +1.213.612.2500 Fax +1.213.612.2501

300 South Grand Ave., 22nd Floor//Los Angeles, CA 90071-3132//United States

Paul Zevnik has over 40 years’ experience defending mass and toxic tort, environmental and product liability suits; handling insurance recovery disputes; and structuring captives, qualified settlement funds, and other risk transfer vehicles to meet mass and toxic tort, environmental, and product liabilities. His experience extends from the courtroom to the boardroom, embracing trial and appellate practice, arbitration, mediation, advice and counsel, bankruptcy and restructuring, and private and public company transactions and financial reporting.

Paul represents clients in product and mass and toxic tort exposure cases involving medical devices, pharmaceuticals, industrial equipment, building materials, consumer products, commodities, oil and gas, ships, aircraft, and machinery. In the insurance area, he handles cases related to general liability, excess, umbrella, property, casualty, errors and omissions, directors and officers, fidelity, media liability, business interruption, employment practices liability, pollution legal liability, fiduciary, mortgage insurance, captive, “bumbershoot,” difference-in-conditions, and manuscript policies.

While he practices regularly in the firm’s California, Washington, DC, and Pennsylvania offices, Paul has litigated, mediated or settled cases, or is currently handling matters, in more than 30 jurisdictions. He has briefed or argued cases before eight federal appellate circuits and before the Supreme Courts of California, Rhode Island, Maryland, Iowa, and Minnesota, and has participated in briefing before the United States Supreme Court. Paul’s graduate work studying American legal history at Harvard is frequently used in briefing and oral argument.

Paul leads the firm’s global product liability, tort, and insurance practice. He is best known for his global insurance recovery efforts on behalf of Fortune 500 companies, encompassing all known and unknown mass and toxic tort, product liability, operations, and environmental liabilities in a single, strategically located proceeding; for his ability to manage the defense of disparate liabilities cost-effectively on a national basis; and for his use of creative settlement techniques, captive insurance, and qualified settlement funds in bankruptcies and restructuring, including through the use of tax-advantaged special purpose vehicles.

Paul’s financial and transactional skills derive from his business experience. He has participated in starting, growing, and managing various businesses, principally in media, advertising, big data, and digital marketing. He co-founded a New York Stock Exchange company. He is lead director and a major shareholder of Entravision Communications Corporation (NYSE: EVC), a publicly traded multimedia company serving the country’s Hispanic population. He was also the founding and managing partner of another national law firm.

Awards and Affiliations

Recognized, Insurance Trailblazer, The National Law Journal (2021)

Band 1, Insurance: Dispute Resolution: Policyholder, Nationwide, Chambers USA (2006–2020)

Band 1, Insurance: Policyholder, District of Columbia, Chambers USA (2006–2020)

Client Service All-Star, BTI Consulting Group (2018)

Hall of Fame, Industry focus: Insurance: advice to policyholders, The Legal 500 US (2020)

Leading Lawyer, Industry focus: Insurance: advice to policyholders, The Legal 500 US (2019)

Leading Lawyer, Insurance - Advice to Policyholders; Dispute Resolution - Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action, The Legal 500 US (2014–2018)

Recommended, Dispute resolution: Product liability, mass tort and class actions: automotive/transport – defense, The Legal 500 US (2019)

Recommended, Dispute resolution: Product liability, mass tort and class actions: pharmaceuticals and medical devices – defense, The Legal 500 US (2019, 2020)

Recommended, Dispute resolution: Product liability, mass tort and class actions: toxic tort – defense, The Legal 500 US (2019, 2020)

Named, The Legal 500 Hall of Fame (2017)

Ranked, Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business (2006–2020)

Recognized, Insurance Law, Washington, DC, The Best Lawyers in America (2017–2020)

Recommended as a national and local litigation star for California for Insurance in Benchmark Litigation (2013–2014, 2017–2018)

Faculty, Management of Mass Tort Litigation, Practicing Law Institute (1983)

Fellow, Joint Center for Urban Studies, Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1976)

Member, The District of Columbia Bar

Member, State Bar of California

Member, Pennsylvania Bar Association

Admissions

  • California
  • District of Columbia
  • Pennsylvania
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. Tax Court
  • U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Education

  • Harvard Law School, 1976, J.D., Cum Laude
  • Harvard University, 1972, A.M. (History)
  • Harvard University, 1972, A.B., Magna Cum Laude

Sectors

  • Energy

Services

  • Energy Regulatory
  • Bankruptcy Restructuring
  • Environmental Counseling Litigation
  • Product Liability Mass Torts
  • Emerging Business Technology
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Insurance Recovery
  • Corporate Finance Investment Management
  • Litigation Regulation Investigations

Regions

  • North America

News

3/1/2021 - Morgan Lewis Partners Named 2021 Trailblazers by The National Law Journal

12/4/2020 - Insurance Group Of The Year: Morgan Lewis, Law360

8/29/2018 - Eaton Units Must Pay $293M In Asbestos Settlement Row, Law360

3/29/2018 - BTI Consulting Group Names Five Morgan Lewis Lawyers Client Service All-Stars for Third Consecutive Year

8/23/2017 - ITT Wins Coverage In Asbestos Insurance Trial, Law360

2/8/2016 - Morgan Lewis Partners Recognized as Client Service All-Stars for 15th Consecutive Year in BTI Consulting 2016 Report

Publications

2/24/2021 - Maximizing Insurance Assets Amid Extreme Weather Conditions

5/6/2020 - COVID-19 Business Interruption Losses: Preserving and Pursuing Claims

5/4/2020 - COVID-19: DC Council to Consider Legislation Mandating Business Interruption Coverage

4/21/2020 - COVID-19 Business Interruption Losses: The Potential Keys to Unlocking Insurance Recovery

March 31, 2020 (Updated April 1, 2020) - Regulatory & Legislative Actions May Impact Business Interruption Coverage for COVID-19 Losses

3/19/2020 - Business Interruption Coverage and the COVID-19 Pandemic

3/17/2020 - Maximizing Insurance Assets for Business Losses Relating to Coronavirus (COVID-19)

8/31/2017 - Hurricane Harvey Client Alert: Insurance Considerations

6/25/2012 - Ninth Circuit Clarifies Settlement Duty of Liability Insurer

12/16/2011 - Reassessing Risks And Coverage Of D&O Insurance, Law360

11/29/2011 - D&O Liability Insurance: Time to Reassess Risks and Coverage

11/3/2011 - Co-author, Case Study: DISH Network V. Arch Specialty Insurance, Law360

10/19/2011 - Tenth Circuit Finds Potential Insurance Coverage for Patent Infringement Claims Under "Advertising Injury" Provisions

4/19/2011 - New York’s Highest Court Requires Policyholder-Specific Choice-of-Law Analysis by Insurers in Liquidation

4/6/2011 - Texas Supreme Court: A Liability Insurer’s Duty to Indemnify May Exist Even Though the Duty to Defend May Not Initially Attach

3/16/2011 - Businesses Globally Affected by the Japan Earthquake— What to Do Now to Preserve Insurance Coverage

2/28/2011 - Policyholders Should Take Steps to Review Their D&O Policies and Take Other Steps to Increase the Potential for Coverage for Whistleblower Claims

10/8/2010 - California Court of Appeals Limits Defenses Available to Insurers in Multiple-Insurer and Third-Party Coverage Cases

9/28/2010 - Policyholders May Not Be Limited to Cumis “Insurer Rates” If Defense Costs Are Not Timely or Fully Paid