Spotlight On: Prof. Aaron Warshaw

By Nicolette Lotrionte '13


Patience and determination. These are the two words of advice that Professor Aaron Warshaw would offer to students looking to pursue a career in law. And judging from his successful career, it appears obvious that these are two words that Warshaw lived by.

Warshaw, a Brooklyn Law School graduate, currently teaches an International Legal Writing course to first-year students. Although his career has not always led him in the international direction, it is an area of law that he has been interested in for a long time.

As a 1L at BLS, Warshaw had only a vague understanding of what international law actually was. But that changed once he was selected for the Brooklyn Journal of International Law, where he eventually held the position of Editor-in-Chief.

One aspect of international law that Warshaw was particularly interested in dealt with conflict of law among countries and transnational issues.

“The thing that I liked most while I was on the journal,” he says, “is that international law is a very unsettled area, things are still changing.” Warshaw addressed an aspect of this in the note he wrote for the Journal of International Law.

“I wrote my note about defamation law as it relates to European Union treaties and how it relates to cross-border publication,” he said. This means “that if The Wall Street Journal publishes in Australia and it is read online by someone in Australia, do they sue for defamation in Australia or in New York?” In fact, this was a real case. Warshaw’s question was answered when the High Court in Australia held that it was permissible to sue The Wall Street Journal in Australia.

It seems that Warshaw is very happy with where his BLS education and career have taken him so far. Prior to his current position, an associate in the Labor and Employment Department at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, Warshaw worked as a law clerk in the Eastern District of New York. He says he is mostly drawn to areas of law that are “intellectually engaging,” such as international law. His work now, which revolves around employment law, appeals to him in the same way. The work is intellectually engaging, the case law is not settled, and new decisions are constantly coming down. Although his position now has very little to do with the international realm, Warshaw says that it has given him a leg-up when it comes to teaching.

“In some ways, having some distance from international law gives me a perspective for my legal writing class,” he says. “Now I can really look at the issues the students are addressing.”

Warshaw has plenty of advice for students who want to pursue a career in international law, such as to take a straightforward international law class in the fall semester of 2L year. International law is a different field with a different language and different courts. A course that provides a survey of international law is helpful.

As for law students in general, “first and foremost, make good contacts with professors or professionals within your field, because opportunities come through the relationships that you build, as much as your demonstrated ability as a student,” he adds.