TESTIMONIALS OF ALBANY LAW SCHOOL STUDENTS
“During the Fall 2016 semester, each of us had the privilege of taking Professor Falati's Entrepreneurship Law and Emerging Technologies class. The class was both interesting and beneficial to us as law students. Professor Falati knew each of the topics we discussed during class lectures inside and out; he is truly an expert in the field. He also brought in various, highly qualified guest speakers to give us an idea of what goes on in the real world from those who are already in it. The highlight of the class, however, was being able to work with actual entrepreneurs/start-up companies in the second half of the semester. This very real experience was not only invaluable, but also fun. We know that class simulations with actors as clients are also valuable, but Professor Falati went above and beyond to embed the experience of working with real, high-end entrepreneurs into his class and his efforts to do so should not go unnoticed. Each and every one us would recommend this class, and agree that we wish more classes at Albany Law provided this "mini-clinic” type experience. Additionally, we have each found Professor Falati to be a great addition to the Albany Law School faculty. He is friendly and always available to all students, and not just those who are currently taking a class with him. He seems to sincerely care about helping those who seek him out, both academically and professionally.” ALBANY LAW SCHOOL STUDENTS
“Through his connections within both the legal and business communities, Professor Falati is able to provide his Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technology students with an unparalleled practical experience. By working directly with an entrepreneur, students not only learn the law behind entrepreneurship, but they learn the art of counseling the entrepreneur client. This hands-on experience is invaluable for any student looking to jump head-first into the world of startups.”
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"I am a final year law student and President of the Environmental Law Society and have enjoyed many different experiences at law school. After completing the Entrepreneurship Law and Emerging Technologies (ELET) hybrid course, I can honestly say that it is was one of the most uniquely beneficial experiences provided to students of my time at Albany Law. Under the guidance of professor Shahrokh Falati, the ELET course surpasses the standard lecture format of classwork by empowering students to apply their knowledge in a real world clinical application for the second half of the semester. The clinical portion of the course pairs students with a technologically focused entrepreneur from across either New York or Massachusetts for the purpose of demonstrating the demands associated with working in a law firm setting. Students are required to travel, complete conflicts checks, attend events, operate under non-disclosure agreements, schedule meetings, track hours, communicate with clients, and follow deadlines. For any students seeking to learn more about applying entrepreneurial, intellectual property, or business law in a real work setting can find no better course offered at Albany Law School."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies is easily the most interesting class I have taken during my studies at Albany Law. Coming in without any prior knowledge of its contents or format, and a very limited knowledge of intellectual property and entrepreneurial law in general, I was unsure as how I would fare in the class. I quickly learned this would be very different from other lecture-based courses I have taken in my first two years of law school. Although there was some background knowledge that was required to be learned, it was easy to follow along and understand, particularly due to having an instructor such as Professor Falati, who intertwines his lectures with first-hand examples and experiences from his distinguished and successful background in IP law. However, my favorite section of the course was working with a real world client on their startup business. Learning in a classroom is one thing, but when you get to go out and see real world applications of what you were taught, and apply those principles to an actual entrepreneurial client, it brings a sense of realness to law school. I think experiences such as these are most crucial to a law student, and bring an interesting spin on the traditional lecture courses offered. Between all my classes, learning this way both the most enjoyable way to learn, and was the most effective way to keep me focused and attentive. I highly recommend Professor Falati and this course, not only to those interested in entrepreneurial law, but to any law students looking for a enjoyable “hands on” experience in class."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"This past semester I had the pleasure of taking a class called Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies. While in the classroom, Professor Falati did a great job of presenting the material to us in a way that made it make sense. We often split off into smaller “law firms” within the class which I felt was very effective in that it allowed us students to process the material as we would in a real-life scenario. Professor Falati always put an emphasis on practical applications of the information we were being taught rather than just lecturing and having us take notes. The second part of the course, and perhaps the most exciting, was the clinical portion. Me and another student were assigned to a young tech entrepreneur out of Williams College. We had the opportunity to go to Massachusetts to meet with the entrepreneur and give advice as to the relative legal issues that were arising in his current phase of business. This class was an invaluable experience and I highly recommend it to anyone who is contemplating this area of law, as well as students who simply want to expand their horizons."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Dear Prof. Falati, I write to provide you with some feedback on this course. I enjoyed the different course format and would highly recommend it to other students, especially to those interested in marketing their own idea at some point in the future. The course was unique in several ways. First, the approach allowed us to learn about a particular technology and market which will be new for many students. Second, by placing an emphasis on helping an actual client, the process encourages learning with an emphasis on providing useful results rather than a grade only. Third, the class introduced a team structure which was useful and allowed us to learn in a more practical and dynamic way which is closer, in my view, to what law school should be. The process was well set up and helped to make things interesting. As a final year student, I appreciated learning the practical side and your focus on us being able to apply what we learnt in the classroom when we traveled with you to interview the technology entrepreneur was great experience and a memorable highlight."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
“Professor Falati, Thank you. The class was very enjoyable and I was able to learn a lot in a short span of time. As someone who is interested in starting a business myself, it was great to learn about all of the various legal matters that it encompasses. Plus, being able to actually interact with real entrepreneurs was a very unique experience that other courses don't offer.”
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Simply put, Professor Falati’s Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies clinic was incredible. I could go on for hours about how much I enjoyed it and just how useful the information and law that we dealt with was. Everything that we did in the clinic applies in the real world and will make me a better lawyer in the near future. Professor Falati is a talented educator, leader, and lawyer who is genuine, caring, intelligent, down to earth, and always willing to help anyone who seeks him out. Professor Falati uses his unrivaled practical and academic experience coupled with his connections in order to provide his ELET students a unique educational experience like no other professor I have come across has. He emulated a professional law office setting when operating the clinic, treating students with trust and respect. Personally, for my clinic assignment I was able to travel to Harvard Medical School/Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center to represent and assist a doctor in commercializing new biotechnology involving both IP and Commercial law. The experiences and opportunities Professor Falati has provided me—and is able to provide to others—were completely unfathomable to me before I met him. I am forever grateful for Professor Falati as he has been a massive inspiration during my time here at Albany Law School and would highly recommend him, his clinic, and his other courses."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
“I was introduced to real legal experiences by taking Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies. Working with a real entrepreneur was a unique experience that taught me a lot about not only the law, buy client communications and relationships. I encourage all law students to take a this style of hybrid course (part theory - part practice) to learn how the law is applied in the real world!”
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"The Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies (ELET) clinic was an extremely valuable experience for me. Personally, I really enjoyed Professor Falati’s teaching style, helping us learn the material in a practical manner, as if we were lawyers involved in an actual law firm. The class portion of this clinic helped me better understand and develop professional skills; these skills proved to be useful in the clinic portion of the semester. In addition to these developed skills, the ELET clinic allowed us students to gain first-hand experience by working with real clients. I found it extremely rewarding to help our client understand the legal issues that could come into play with the progress of his technology, as well as build upon my professional networking skills. I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in learning real-life skills, those with an interest in Intellectual Property and/or business formations, as well as those interested in helping clients who are passionate about their innovations."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Participating in the ELET clinic course was one of my most invaluable experiences at Albany Law. The experience was unique in offering interaction with a well-respected and recognized client and offering student teams the ability to contribute to large scale and complex projects. The clinic provides an opportunity to explore and delve into various areas of law and see how each may apply in a legal counseling setting for a technology startup."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
“This past semester I had the pleasure of participating in Professor Falati’s Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies hybrid clinic at Albany Law School. This unique clinic offered a combination of in class doctrinal teaching as well as an amazing opportunity to interact with real clients on issues surrounding entrepreneurship and new technology development. The classes were interesting with a lot of discussion. The highlight of this course, however, was meeting with clients, all of whom had newly developed technologies, and assisting them in developing business strategy to help commercialize their invention. My partner and I worked with Prof. Falati to help a team of tech. entrepreneurs in Massachusetts who had developed a device to detect and monitor concussions. Was great to have the opportunity to apply what we learned in class in a real-world setting, working with real clients and learning from an experienced practically focused professor about substantive law, client counseling and writing reports for clients. Memorable experiential course.”
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Professor Falati’s Entrepreneurship Law Clinic was one of the best experiences I had at Albany Law. Every student must participate within a clinic during law school. With his connections within the capital district professor Falati contacted numerous entrepreneurs that needed legal help. We were each given a client and worked with that client to answer legal questions associated with business star-ups. Professor Falati allowed us to interview the client and really get a feel for how being an attorney is. I thoroughly enjoyed being outside the classroom which allowed me to put the lessons we learn in the classroom into a real life situation. I would recommend this class to anyone, and would recommend professor Falati as a teacher."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"I enjoyed the Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies (ELET) clinic because it was a unique learning opportunity that took place in two distinct parts. In the first half of the class we learned a variety of topics that are relevant to entrepreneurship and Professor Falati added some practical techniques that we may not get in a normal doctrinal class. The lectures would also have practice like tangents where students would act as members of a law firm and answer hypothetical questions based on the topics covered in the class. In the second part of the class we put everything we learned into practice. Under Professor Falati’s supervision, we corresponded with, counseled, and prepared a memorandum providing options for an actual client. We had a lot of fun traveling to meet clients, and getting a chance to put what we learned into practice. The combination of doctrinal learning, guidance from Professor Falati’s experience in practice, and the opportunity to put our knowledge to use helped to solidify our knowledge of the curriculum, and built our confidence to be an effective lawyers once we begin to practice."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"The ELET clinic was an overwhelmingly positive experience. Would highly recommend it, especially if you are interested in a different kind of law elective focused on practice and technology. I teamed up with another law student and we were given the opportunity to travel with the professor and get rare hands-on experience with a real client. We worked with an inventor at a technology incubator in Utica on his newly developed software app, and received valuable feedback from Professor Falati during the process before ultimately submitting a finalized report to the entrepreneur we worked with. Was a unique experience. Overall, I believe ELET would be a great clinical experience for any law student."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"The class helped me a lot in terms with even dealing with clients. I intend on becoming an entrepreneur in the future. So it was helpful to learn some of the dangers to look out for. It helped to learn from the attorney’s perspective, rather than the entrepreneur’s perspective."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"I took the Entrepreneurship Law and Emerging Technologies (ELET) clinic with Professor Falati in the Fall of 2019 and I can honestly say that I’ve acquired some of the most practically applicable knowledge from his course than I have from most other courses I have taken throughout my time at Albany Law. In the ELET clinic Professor Falati constantly emphasized a more practical approach to the study of each of the separate areas of law that he taught, forcing us to stop thinking like students and start thinking like practicing attorneys. During class he would often split us up into separate “law firms'' and present real world problems that we had to work together with the members of our firm to solve. This classroom portion of the course was intended to prepare us for the second portion of the class which was meeting with an actual client to inquire about and discuss the relevant issues pertaining to their startup business centered around their tech idea. During this portion Professor Falati handed the reins over to the students to act like attorneys to handle the interview and communications with our clients. The entire experience was extremely beneficial to my professional development as I was not only able to gain some valuable insight on the practice of law but it also forced me out of my comfort zone and gave me the well needed opportunity to put my lawyering skills to the test."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Professor Falati's Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies clinic provides students with the unique ability to apply concepts learned in class to a real world situation. For this class/clinic hybrid, students engage in lecture and discussion about entrepreneurship law for the first half of the semester. The second half of the semester the students are given a partner and a client to write a memo for. Students travel throughout New York and Massachusetts to meet their client. Having this one on one time with a client was great experience, especially when it comes to being prepared for future internships and jobs after graduation. I would highly recommend taking this hybrid clinic with Professor Falati who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the material and experience as a whole."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"I came into law school with the hope of pursuing Business and Intellectual Property law. The Entrepreneurial Law and Emerging Technologies Class took my two desired career paths and showed how they work together in an interesting and interactive way. Having entered law school with no job experience in the legal profession, I enjoyed how this class gave me valuable live client counseling experience as well as experience in legal writing. I learnt a lot from this experience of representing a real Tech. Entrepreneur, working in the high end designer fashion industry. This class not only prepared me for my future career, but also gave me a more thorough understanding of materials that have allowed me to better understand other classes as well as certain bar material. I highly recommend this class to those who are interested in both Business and IP law, or are looking to explore different legal paths."
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
"Participating in this hybrid clinic helped me gain confidence when communicating with a “real” client, as opposed to purely hypothetical clients and their situations, which are discussed in every law school class. This clinic definitely helped me refine my communication skills. Thanks to the subject matter and Professor Falati, I was super interested in my project every step of the way, and that was reflected in my grade and what I got out of the class as a whole.
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL
“Honestly, business law never appealed to me until I stumbled upon the “social enterprise” movement, which utilizes for-profit business concepts as a vehicle for societal change. I realized that my deepest interests collide somewhere between the fields of law, technology, social progress, and entrepreneurship. At that point, I was thrilled to learn Albany Law School is an emerging leader in this realm of innovation and its confluence within the field of law. I heard about a new course designed by a Faculty member with practice experience, Professor Falati, and quickly enrolled in his Entrepreneurship Law in Emerging Technologies class. Professor Falati’s hybrid course covered a lot of theory and also gave us an opportunity to work in teams of two directly with talented client-entrepreneurs, sharpening our ability to listen and interface effectively as future attorneys, while also gaining a valuable understanding of practical business and legal concepts. My law school partner and I traveled to another University several hours away from Albany to meet our tech. entrepreneur client team, along with Prof. Falati. The course overall was unique and enjoyable. I learnt a lot and it allowed me to see and think of projects designed to propel the capital region forward and in-step with the aggressive pace of urban revitalization and social innovation found elsewhere around the country.”
LAW STUDENT AT ALBANY LAW SCHOOL