At Fordham Law, Hooman Yazdanian ’25 has translated his bachelor’s degree in media studies and experience as a journalist into a long term interest in media law and first amendment rights. While at Fordham, he worked as a legal writing teaching assistant, the bench editor on the executive board of the Fordham Moot Court team, and a research assistant for Professor Howard Erichson. After graduation, Yazdanian will be working as a judicial law clerk for U.S. District Court Judge K. Michael Moore in the Southern District of Florida.
Where did you grow up?
I was born in Hanover, Germany, to Iranian parents, but we moved to the U.S. when I was four years old, after which I grew up in Glendora, a suburb of Los Angeles.
Where did you study before Fordham Law?
I studied media studies at UC Berkeley.
What are your areas of interest?
I’m interested pretty broadly in being a litigator. On most days, my interests are in media law, like defamation, first amendment issues, and soft IP. But there are days where I’d answer this by highlighting my interests in white collar and other commercial litigation work too.
Why did you choose Fordham Law?
I was interested in working in New York long term, and Fordham was perfectly situated to help make that happen. The job outcome data bore that out. I also had heard Fordham students fostered a collegial atmosphere, and that’s definitely true.
What has been the best thing about studying law in New York City?
New York City is a great place where there’s so much to do. Many of my best friends live here as well, even outside of law school. That has made law school and its stresses a lot easier to maneuver because I know I can lean on friends or the great things to do in the city. At the same time, it’s also great to study in a place where so much great legal work happens. For example, I wouldn’t have been able to extern with a great jurist like Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto in the Eastern District of New York if I went somewhere else, and that’s definitely been the most intellectually stimulating and fulfilling experience of my law school years.
What were you involved in at the Law School?
During my 1L summer, one of my jobs was to be a research assistant for Professor Howard Erichson. In that role I got to help him find new cases and otherwise update a new edition of his civil procedure textbook. I loved getting the chance to find some of the cases that would teach future generations of students some of my favorite 1L concepts.
The other major experience has been my work as bench editor on the executive board of the Fordham Moot Court. That has definitely defined much of my 3L year and it was fun working with a great community of folks. I’ve also gotten to do extensive editing work that I’ve found extremely valuable in honing my attention to detail and writing generally.
What was your favorite experience at Fordham Law?
I loved being a legal writing teaching assistant. I really enjoyed working with 1Ls and helping them navigate being introduced to law school and legal writing as a concept. I found it incredibly valuable both personally and in terms of improving as a writer myself. Aside from that, my favorite experiences have all been working with my study group. We’ve not only helped each other academically, but we’ve kept each other sane and happy. I feel confident I’ve found people that’ll be in my life forever and that can’t really be topped.
What are your career plans?
I will be working as a judicial law clerk for U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore in Miami in the Southern District of Florida. After that, I plan to return to New York and work as a litigator. It’s hard to say now exactly what that will look like, as I enjoy a lot of things and find myself pulled in very different directions. Right now, my ideal path is to eventually work in the media law space.
What is one piece of advice you would give to incoming 1Ls?
The most important thing is probably to not get distracted by everyone around you. It can be easy to hear about how others are studying or finding jobs and spiral because you’re doing it differently. It’s important to not let that happen: develop a plan, work with people you trust and like, and trust your process.
Did you have any important mentors during law school?
There are a lot of people I’ve gone to whose advice has spoken to me in some way. For example, Professor Carl Minzner’s advice about finding what you truly love and not getting trapped into all-too-familiar patterns that distract you from that aim. I feel similarly about Professor Erichson, and his perspective on how to live a healthy, full life while building a career you both want and can be proud of. Professors Kerry Fulham and Sepehr Shahshahani have always been extremely valuable people to go to when I need career advice, and each has encouraged me to not sell myself short.
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