Written by: Cole Mathews
Raj Nichani’s ascent from Staff Editor of Syracuse’s Law Review to starting one of the most successful legal recruiting agencies in Atlanta, Georgia is both admirable and educational. Graduating from the Syracuse College of Law in 2000, he has utilized the skills he sharpened during his time on the Syracuse Law Review as well as during his time in law school generally to propel his success to new heights within his profession as a Legal Recruiter.
Raj initially began his studies at Oxford College of Emory University from 1993-95, where he achieved his Associate of Arts degree. He then went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in both history and philosophy from Emory University, graduating in 1997. Faced with a decision of where to next direct his future, he made the choice to attend law school, influenced by both his grandfather who practiced tax law, and his mother who attended law school. According to Raj, this decision felt natural, as he had always wanted to study law, and the study of history, philosophy, and law are closely linked.
Specific to Syracuse, Mr. Nichani decided to attend Syracuse College of Law due to the quality legal education it offers and its proximity to New York City. He liked the idea that he could potentially go down to the city to visit with his colleagues as well as the job opportunities down state. Soon, the realities of life in law school and being on Law Review surmounted, and he realized that he would not be making as many weekend trips to New York City as he had previously imagined. While this was tough break for Raj in the short term, he quickly realized that the monotonous grind and responsibilities he had to undertake during his time in Syracuse honed his skills and enhanced his capabilities both on a personal level and in his career path.
During his time on Law Review, Raj started by holding the position of Associate Editor before taking on the role of Staff Editor his 3L year. He emphasizes how these roles helped sharpen his attention to detail and forced him to engage in grunt style work, both skills that have helped him garner success in his profession. He notes that using the Blue Book may not be very exciting, but that there are greater lessons to be learned than just how to properly legally cite and what a footnote in an article should look like. Rather, these tasks forced him to be meticulous and carefully analyze problems, skills which he says have helped him in legal recruiting, writing emails, and general conversation with colleagues.
In speaking on the impact Law Review has had on his career, Raj noted that the Syracuse Law Review carries prestige that has bolstered his reputation and has earned the respect of others he has worked with in the legal field. He specifically notes the respect and honor that comes with being a part of the journal, and how legal professionals tend to view your writing style more favorably when they know that are an alumnus of Law Review. Further, Nichani emphasizes the “iron sharpens iron” atmosphere of Law Review, and how surrounding yourself with others that have similar interests and writing styles can offer students an opportunity to fraternize with likeminded individuals and bounce ideas off each other.
Raj started his legal career at Kelley Drye & Warren in New York City as a corporate intern in 2000, during his 2L year at Syracuse. Initially, he was set on doing corporate work and was eager to get started, but soon realized that corporate law may not be the route for him.
This led him to focus on litigation, making the move from New York City to Atlanta in 2003, where he remains today. In Atlanta, he began work as a general litigator specializing in securities for Rogers & Harden LLP, before making the switch to his current profession as a Legal Recruiter. Within the field of Legal Recruiting, Raj says he achieved the largest accomplishment of his career by starting his own agency in 2010, The RMN Agency. While this was certainly a big risk, he says that surrounding himself with good and smart people has been the key to his success, of which there has been plenty. His agency has earned “hall of fame” status for legal recruiting services in Atlanta through ALM Law.com’s Daily Report and continues to enjoy success in connecting legal professionals to advantageous job opportunities in the Atlanta area today.
With all the success that Raj has had, his advice to current members of the Syracuse College of Law community is simple – reach out to people and use connections to your advantage. He emphasizes how most legal professionals are more than willing to help current law students or new attorneys if they take the first step and reach out, but that the most crucial aspect is to “always ask people what they can tell you.” Whether the advice sought is specific to certain aspects of a job, or more general to certain legal fields, he observes that connections are crucial to the success of young legal professionals. Specific to Law Review, he notes that alumni from the same Law Review are almost bound to each other, and he has found that members of the Law Review will especially go out of their way to help others.
From Oxford College of Emory University to his current position as the President and CEO of The RMN Agency, Raj Nichani has enjoyed success through his hard work and dedication to his craft. Nichani has taken lessons from the difficult nature of law school, law review, and his time working in the legal field to build a holistic and workable view of how to tackle issues, emphasizing the skills of diligence, attention to detail, and reaching out to others. Today, Raj remains an involved and spirited member of the Syracuse body of alumni, often attending basketball and football games local to him and even traveling if given the opportunity. As such a valuable member of the Syracuse College of Law community, Law Review looks forward to awarding him our Alumni Achievement Award for Volume 75!