During his four years in the U.S. Marine Corps, Shervin Shahnazi ’26 oversaw a platoon of 35 marines as a First Lieutenant. When on the ground, especially during his deployment in Asia, he said one question constantly occupied his mind while making, what he calls, “life-and-limb decisions.” That question was, “How is this going to impact my Marines and their welfare?”
Before leaving the Marines this past summer, Shahnazi began researching law schools that aligned with one of the core values of the Corps—commitment—and fostered a collaborative sense of community. Drawn to attending a big city school with those attributes, he says Fordham Law was the perfect fit for him.
Did anything in your military service prompt you to seek a career in law?
I always had an academic interest in the law. In undergrad [UC Davis], I was very interested in philosophy, sociology, and politics, and the law, to me, formed a nexus between all those things. That’s why I really enjoy my law classes now because I see themes of these things pop up in every class I’m taking. But while I was in the military, I was really exposed to the power of law and how it affects everyday experiences. People say the cliche, ‘knowledge is power,’ but in law school knowledge really is powerful.
Some of the things we learn empowers us in a way that can impact the everyday lives of ordinary people. For example, we recently learned about landlord tenant law and how there are certain things in a contract that are not enforceable because of a statute. I feel like the default power dynamic between a landlord and tenant is very unbalanced because the landlord has the power over the tenant—but with the information I’m learning the balance could be equalized so much more. It’s also made me realize how the law can be such a barrier [to everyday people], too, because you have to go to law school to better understand how to level the playing field and create better balance. Additionally, there’s a service-oriented drive that I and a lot of veterans have of ‘we have to use this knowledge to help those who don’t have access to it,’ in order to bring a more equitable living standard for them.
Why did you choose Fordham Law?
One thing the military ingrained in us is initiative, and being close to opportunities for networking, where I could talk to people, has been a very substantial factor for me. I was also impressed by the caliber of the faculty here. My professor, Benjamin C. Zipursky, is the leading scholar in torts, and it’s so surreal to talk to the person who authored the case book that my other peers in different law schools are just reading in class. Being able to form relationships with faculty was a big part of my decision to come to Fordham Law, and when I went to admitted students weekend, it was made clear to me that this could actually happen. What was especially clear to me was that the Fordham faculty take their role as mentors seriously. For example, my property professor and house leader, Carl Minzner, goes above and beyond in getting to know our stories and aspirations. I actually had lunch with him not that long ago. These types of interactions are typical at Fordham and are one of the aspects of law school I was looking forward to the most.
Fordham Law also has a history of service, which is so important to me and something I’m very appreciative of. The Public Interest Resource Center does such an amazing job offering opportunities for us to contribute to the public interest. I knew that whatever I wanted to do in law, pro bono and public interest would always be an enduring theme in my career. I don’t know what I want to do yet post-graduation, but I know part of it’s always going to include public interest. I’m also appreciative of the culture here. I’m in a study group now and it’s super normal to just help each other, or if I miss a class, it’s a given that we share notes. There’s none of the cutthroat or toxic competitive environments that you typically hear about in law school.
What would you say to veterans who are considering applying to law school?
I ultimately view a lot of my success as a result of veterans helping me. It wasn’t too long ago that I was undergoing the admissions process, which I knew nothing about and was highly stressed out over. So, I just reached out to veterans on LinkedIn, had coffee chats with them, and received so much support in the application process from them, whether it was reading over my personal statement or giving me advice. I was never denied a coffee chat by a veteran because there’s this abiding faith in and loyalty towards each other, which sticks with you both during and after the military. Now I’m in a position where I can give advice to veterans who are looking to make the transition. Each time I have coffee chats with veterans who are applying, I say, “Listen, if you go to law school, it’s your turn to pass it on to the next veteran who’s in the same spot you are now, today.” I feel like I’m standing on the shoulders of giants who helped pave the way for me to go to law school. I’m so grateful to them and feel it’s my turn to pay it forward.
I want to spread, particularly to veterans, that Fordham Law is an amazing place for us. Fordham gives you the keys to the legal capital of the world, and the legal capital of the world happens to embrace veterans in their hiring process. The world is your oyster.
What are you most looking forward to in your law school journey?
I don’t know what I want to do just yet, but I’m really looking forward to the journey of finding out. I’m looking forward to next summer and landing an externship to explore and discover what fields I might want to pursue. I don’t want to have any regrets or write off something that could turn out to be something I’d be very passionate about. Academically, I’m looking forward to exploring electives that are very pertinent to my academic interests, including data privacy and artificial intelligence. I’m a fellow at the Center on Law and Information Policy (CLIP), and it’s at the forefront of legal academia in this area in a lot of respects. The Center, and Fordham Law as a whole, bring very pertinent people who address very novel issues in the law and, in my opinion, existential societal questions.
For example, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand was here not too long ago talking about the regulation of crypto. Fordham Law is playing its role in being part of the conversation on how to address those topics, and I’m excited to be part of that conversation by being a CLIP fellow. Fordham also offers an amazing wide variety of clinics, and I think that’d be an amazing avenue for me to explore and pursue in a more formalized manner. I’m the type of person who learns by doing, and I feel the clinics are definitely an amazing tool to facilitate that.
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