2L Justin Evans Makes Waves with Newest Journal Article

 Justin Evans already holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, a Master of Science in Oncology and Cancer Biology. Now, as a student at MSU Law, he’s tackling blockchain with his newest journal article.

“‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’: The Real Implications of Blockchain in the Legal Industry,” was selected for publication in the Spring 2018 issue of the Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & Law, features the popular topic of blockchain, a branch of cryptography.

“There’s been a lot of talk about bitcoin,” said Evans. “And for me, I realized blockchain had a more useful application to law. I wanted to use AI (Artificial Intelligence) to help make them smarter.”

Last year, Evans had a conversation with his mentor, Samir Patel, '17, about transactions without walls. How could people accomplish things like supply chain with other individuals they don’t necessarily trust or know—and still generate a smart contract?

“For me, that idea was interesting one, so I wanted to do more research to see if that was possible,” said Evans. “I wanted to use AI to help make them smarter. So that was the goal of my paper. Standard contracts had these clear issues, so I realized we can get rid of some by smart contracts.”

Although Evans already has an impressive background in science and medicine, he feels a legal education is a natural extension of his interests.

“My mom always said I would do something that involved argument,” said Evans. “I fell in love with science and law because you have a theory and you use whatever tools you use with your experiences in science, laws and cases to build a point...it’s the same logic.”

Evans uses that logic and applies it to his concentration in intellectual property and innovation. He aims to become a CEO of a pharmaceutical or tech company.

“I think for me, it’s basically making sure I’m living my purpose,” said Evans “Whatever purpose it is that God gave me while I’m here on earth. I really fell in love with the cancer space and increasing access to therapy to groups of people who normally don’t have available therapy pharmaceutical don’t see as marketable, targeting those groups and helping with legal issues in order to increase access to medicine. That’s one thing that drives me, however it is, is living my purpose.”