Lewis & Clark Law Professor, Tabrez Ebrahim, Named Fulbright U.S. Scholar

Each year, 800 U.S. citizens are awarded with a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Award to teach, conduct research, and carry out professional projects in more than 135 countries across the world. This year, Lewis & Clark Law professor, Tabrez Ebrahim, has been named one of such recipients, getting the chance to build upon his previous work as a Fulbright Specialist at the Jordan University of Science & Technology.

The highly-esteemed Fulbright program awards these scholarships on the basis of demonstrated achievement and leadership in scholars’ respective fields, with Professor Ebrahim being one of the few recipients named within the legal field this year. Aiming to exchange knowledge, build relationships, address critical global issues, and support the long-term interests of the United States, the program is considered to be one of the most prestigious scholarships in the United States.

Having focused his scholarship in areas such as intellectual property law, law and technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and law, business law, and entrepreneurship and innovation, Professor Ebrahim will now explore these topics on a new scale through this award. His research will look at how inventor motivations, startup formation, and business growth differ between the U.S. legal system and that in Jordan. These comparative law considerations and business impact results will take into account inventive inclinations, entrepreneurial motivations, and risk-taking that each society is generally more comfortable with, how reception might be different in Jordan where the understanding of patents and trademarks are newer, and how religious law and cultural attitudes may influence business activity. His time spent researching will be supplemented with both a teaching aspect and a learning one, with Professor Ebrahim giving lectures and teaching short courses on related topics as well as enrolling in Arabic courses himself to advance his speaking and reading ability and to help conduct comparative legal research. This project, which Professor Ebrahim will be endeavoring on following the Spring 2026 semester, will cover a greater scope of research and over a longer period of time than the work that he had previously done as a Fulbright Specialist.

Additionally, Professor Ebrahim will have an opportunity to help shape the innovation trajectory of Jordan University of Science and Technology, drawing upon lessons from similar leading U.S. institutions. Through fostering technology transfer, innovation, and entrepreneurial activity to drive economic growth at universities and colleges in Jordan, the country hopes to develop a closer match between the knowledge and skills of its college-educated youth with the needs of the labor market and support capacity building for economic advancement.