Arash Ghiassi ’18

I decided to attend Yale Law School because I knew that I was interested in a career in public interest law. And I was impressed by the range of options and opportunities to pursue that interest at Yale Law School.

In addition, during the admitted students weekend, I was able to meet with a community of public interest-minded students here. And I knew that having that community, In addition to those opportunities, was very important to me. And that's why I chose to come here.

I've been involved in two clinics at Yale Law School, both of them have been direct representation clinics. One of them is the landlord tenant clinic, and the other is the Criminal Justice Clinic. In both instances, we represent community members from New Haven, in front of the state court. In one case, in proceedings that would have led to their being evicted from their homes. And in another, in proceedings related to criminal charges. In both of those clinics, I had the opportunity to gain very valuable skills, but also to see how the law affects the most marginalized peoples in our community. Which is very important.

I'm involved with a number of student organizations, one of them is Outlaws, which is the LGBT student organization here at Yale Law School. As part of Outlaws, we provide mentorship for new students, but we also organize social and academic events and do outreach in the community. I'm also involved with the Rebellious Lawyering Conference, which is the largest student run public interest conference in the United States. And it's actually about to happen in a couple of weeks. And so I'm very busy with a team of other students to make sure that it runs smoothly.

One memory from Yale Law School that will stick with me happened during the first couple of weeks that I was at Yale Law School, during the Global Constitutionalism Conference that happens every year. And during that time, I remember meeting with Justice Ablie Sachs of South Africa, who had been a personal hero of mine for a while. And I remember meeting him, and just being dumbfounded by that. And there are very many opportunities at Yale Law School to meet interesting people, who will come through. And that's just a fantastic opportunity here.