David Schmid
Image of David Schmid

Dr. David Schmid

Partner

Email

david.schmid@aoshearman.com

Phone

+49 69 2648 5633

Offices

Frankfurt

V-CARD
David regularly advises on large-scale, cross-border internal investigations being conducted at corporates and financial institutions and the subsequent remediation measures regarding identified issues.

His expertise in particular covers investigations relating to breaches of compliance regulations, criminal law-related issues, tax-specific issues (e.g. cum-ex and similar constellations) or matters related to antitrust law. He advises both with respect to preventative internal investigations as well as investigations instigated by regulators or other authorities or investigations relating to civil claims or arbitration proceedings.

Besides, David has extensive experience advising clients as a single point of contact in cybercrime cases and related prevention measures.

David was able to broaden his experience in internal investigations through a secondment to the Regulatory Enforcement team of a major international financial institution.

Expertise

Industries

Experience

Representative matters

  • Conducted a large-scale internal investigation on behalf of a major international audit firm in connection with the statutory audit of a multinational corporate group.
  • Led an extensive internal investigation for a globally operating German medical technology and healthcare corporation into allegations including systematic balance sheet manipulation spanning six years across multiple subsidiaries in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the potential involvement of additional group entities, including the German parent company.
  • Managed a complex, cross-border internal investigation for an international bank concerning cum/ex transactions, including coordination of strategy and engagement with criminal prosecution, tax, and regulatory authorities across multiple jurisdictions.
  • Conducted a large-scale internal investigation for a major pension fund into allegations of compliance violations arising from high-value real estate transactions in Germany and the United States over an extended period.
  • Advised and represented a major German services company in response to a ransomware attack that resulted in the encryption of the company's entire IT infrastructure, including management of associated ransom demands and incident response.
  • Advised and represented a German shipping company in connection with a sophisticated cyber-fraud attack in which unknown actors impersonated long-standing business partners of the company through falsified emails, ultimately inducing the company to transfer funds in the seven-figure range to a fraudulent account in Poland.

Pro bono

  • Secondment to Greece Pro Bono Collaborative (European Lawyers in Lesvos).

Published Work

  • Schmid, D. / Prof. Brodowksi, D. / StAín Scholzen, A. / Zoller, C. (2023) „Extorted and then prosecuted? Ways to obtain legal certainty with ransom payments“, NStZ 2023, 385 (in German)

Recognition

“extremely capable lawyer”
Client
“impressively comprehensive legal expertise”
Client

Awards

  • Featured in Legal 500
  • Ranked as "Ones To Watch" for Corporate Governance and Compliance, since 2024, Best Lawyers-Ranking (Germany), Handelsblatt
  • "Rising Star White Collar Crime" by the Legal Media Expert Group (2022)

Qualifications

Admissions

Rechtsanwalt, Germany, 2013

Academic

Second State Exam, Law, Germany, 2013

Doctor iur., Law, Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg, Germany, 2013

LL.M., Golden Gate University, San Francisco, USA, 2011

First State Exam, Law, Heidelberg, Germany, 2009 

Languages

German, English
Disclaimer
A&O Shearman was formed on May 1, 2024 by the combination of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Allen & Overy LLP and their respective affiliates (the legacy firms). Any matters referred to above may include matters undertaken by one or more of the legacy firms rather than A&O Shearman.