News Archive

Artyom Geghamyan, LL.M. ’07, attended IU McKinney as a fellow of the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program. Geghamya says he became determined to pursue an international career after traveling as a student.

Where are you from originally?

I am originally from Armenia, but at the time of my birth, Armenia was still part of the Soviet Union. I spent the first 10 years of my life as a Soviet citizen before Armenia gained independence in 1991. I was born in a small rural town, Yeghvard, with a population of about 11,000. Growing up in a newly independent country, I witnessed firsthand the transition from a Soviet system to a market economy, which profoundly shaped my worldview and career aspirations.

Where do you live and work now?

I currently live in Yerevan, and I travel frequently for work. Previously, I worked in Strasbourg, France, as a Legal Officer at the Council of Europe. After graduating from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, I spent a year as a Transitional Justice Fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Later, after passing the New York Bar Exam and shifting to private practice, I represented clients—mainly from the mining and metals sectors—before the London Court of International Arbitration, as well as courts in Cyprus and the Russian Federation. Nowadays, my professional travels take me mostly to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, particularly the UAE and Saudi Arabia, where I engage in legal and business advisory work.

What is your job now?

Currently, I serve as the executive chairman of the International Chamber of Mines of Armenia (ICMA), an industry organization promoting sustainable mining practices, foreign investment in Armenia’s critical minerals industry, and Armenia’s contribution to the global green energy transition by supplying critical minerals. I also manage a boutique legal, and transaction advisory firm based in Yerevan, advising clients from different parts of the world, with a focus on critical minerals, energy, infrastructure, banking, and defense sectors.

Previously, I served as general counsel for one of the largest mining and metals conglomerates in Armenia. My public sector experience includes serving as deputy minister of justice and as a member of the Constitutional Reform Commission.

In addition, I am an arbitrator and a member of the Arbitration Council of the Arbitration and Mediation Center of Armenia. While in Riyadh last year, I met Dr. Ahmed A. Altawyan, J.D. ’17, another IU School of Law alumnus a highly successful practicing attorney, with whom we have established a partnership, and I currently serve on the advisory board of their law firm in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In general, I have to say that we have an extremely powerful network of IU School of Law alumni worldwide. This is a great asset, and we are lucky to have access to such a resourceful network of legal practitioners in almost all parts of the world.

Where did you do your legal studies?

I completed my legal studies in Armenia, earning a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree from Yerevan State University, followed by a master’s degree in international law at the same university. I later defended my Ph.D. thesis on European Union law and integration at the Public Administration Academy of Armenia.

Following that, I was accepted into the LL.M. program in International and Comparative Law at Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (then Indiana University School of Law) through the U.S. Department of State’s Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program.
What made you want to become a lawyer?

I come from a family of engineers, and my mother is a doctor, so the legal profession was a new path for me. When I applied to Yerevan State University in 1997, I listed Oriental Studies as my first choice, followed by International Relations, then Law, and finally Economics. Law was the most competitive program, and I never imagined I would be admitted. My initial goal was to study Oriental Studies or International Relations. However, I performed well on the entrance exams, including an optional math exam that gave me an advantage. As a result, I was admitted to law school on a full four-year state scholarship. That unexpected opportunity set me on the path to a legal career, one that I have embraced ever since.

What made you decide to pursue a Master of Laws degree?

Pursuing an LL.M. was a natural step in my academic and professional journey. As a law student, I was highly engaged in academic and extracurricular activities. I was elected chairman of the Law School Student Council at Yerevan State University and actively participated in student events and university life. At that time, I was considering an academic career or public service, and a master’s degree seemed like a logical step in that direction. Early in my career, I lectured on EU Law and the Practice of the European Court of Human Rights at the Public Administration Academy of Armenia.
However, life took a different and more interesting turn when I entered the corporate and business world, where I found new challenges and opportunities that shaped the course of my career.

What brought you to IU McKinney?

To put it in perspective, at the time, the idea of studying in the United States was almost unimaginable for someone like me. Tuition was prohibitively high, and no one in my family had ever visited the U.S. before. You could probably count on one hand the number of lawyers in Armenia with an educational background in the United States or U.S. law degree. My only exposure to the wider world came in 1998 when, as an 18-year-old student, I participated in a work camp in Hamburg, Germany, helping build a water park for local residents. That experience had a profound impact on me, and I became determined to find a way to build an international career.

Upon returning from Germany, I started searching for opportunities. I applied for the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program, administered by the U.S. Department of State. My first application landed me on the waitlist, which was discouraging. I remember attending a reception at the Marriott Hotel in Yerevan with U.S. Embassy representatives and finalists of Muskie Fellowship program, where the reality of being a waitlisted candidate felt almost humiliating. A friend of mine, also on the waitlist, was so frustrated that he vowed never to apply again. But I decided to try one more time. The second time, I wasn’t even placed on the waitlist—it was an even bigger disappointment.

On my third attempt, I was finally awarded the full scholarship, including tuition, living expenses, and travel costs. When I received the confirmation, I couldn’t have been happier. My perseverance had paid off, and my journey to IU McKinney School of Law began.

What was your experience like at IU McKinney?

It was my first exposure to the United States, so everything was new. The culture shock preparation sessions we attended as part of the fellowship program turned out to be extremely useful. It was a life-changing experience that shaped the way I think, measure, and perceive life.
The academic workload was intense—especially the reading assignments, which were far more demanding than what students were accustomed to in my home country. However, IU McKinney provided an incredibly supportive and resourceful environment, where everything was designed to help students focus on their studies and prepare for their future careers. I was the first Armenian student at the law school, and I had the honor of hanging the Armenian flag in the atrium among other international flags.

What was your favorite thing about Indianapolis?

Indianapolis has a unique sense of space and freedom. The city has an open, airy feel, especially around the canal walk and parks.
One of my most memorable moments in Indianapolis was in 2007 when my wife, Olimpia, visited me from Armenia. As we drove from the airport to my home, I took her through downtown Indianapolis, where she found the entire city celebrating—fireworks, music, thousands of people in the streets. I jokingly told Olimpia, "This is how Hoosiers celebrate the arrival of IU School of Law students’ family members!" Only later did we realize that on that day, the Indianapolis Colts had won the Super Bowl, defeating the Chicago Bears.