Eric A. Greenbaum
Hewlett, New York
2L
Arguing a case in front of a courtroom is not what Eric A.
Greenbaum envisioned for himself when he was an undergraduate
neurobiology major at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.
After obtaining his graduate degree in pharmacology and
establishing a career in the biotechnology industry, Eric
discovered his passion for the process of analysis and research. He
decided law was a more fulfilling way to utilize those skills while
making a direct impact on the world, and in the fall of 2007 he
changed direction by applying to law school.
“As an employee for one of the world’s leading biotechnology
companies, I spent more time conducting experiments than I did
researching and analyzing to solve a problem. I realized that I
enjoyed the analysis part more. There is a large amount of analysis
that goes into solving legal problems and law school allows me the
chance to do that on a daily basis.”
Before he applied to law school, Eric worked as a research
specialist at Genzyme Corporation where he developed treatments for
neurological diseases. He was also among one of the first
specialists at the University of Pennsylvania Department of
Biochemistry and Biophysics to publish a biophysical
characterization of a newly discovered Parkinson's disease protein
in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
It only took one visit to St. John’s School of Law as a
prospective student for Eric to know St. John’s was the right
choice for him. Eric is now a second year law student in the School
of Law and a prominent member of the Moot Court Honor Society.
His involvement in Moot Court, he feels, has given him the
confidence he needs to become a skilled and effective lawyer: “When
I first joined Moot Court, my legs would shake as I recited my case
to the judges. But I looked at it as a challenge - a way of testing
myself and my ability to understand the law and explain it in an
articulate way,” says Eric.
He will be interning this summer at Alston and Bird, named by
Fortune as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” for the past
10 consecutive years: “The Law School’s Office of Career Services
was an immense help in finding internships. They showed me how to
market my scientific experience to the legal community. Career
Services saw to it that I adapted my style appropriately.”
Eric plans to use his scientific background to pursue a career
in patent litigations to help scientists who want to bring their
ideas from "bench to bedside": “My goal, after I become a lawyer is
to help guide scientists’ new biotech products through the patent
system and license them to companies that will develop them into
products that will help people. My education from St. John’s in
addition to my previous career experiences has prepared me to do
that.”
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