Alumni Spotlight: Ryan Costantini '02

From the time he was a toddler, Ryan Costantini has loved airplanes and aviation; becoming a pilot would have been a dream come true. While physical limitations prevented him from realizing that dream, Costantini says he’s doing the next best thing—serving as in-house counsel for a company that works directly with commercial airlines.

“My work for Pratt & Whitney’s Commercial Engines & Global Services Division is a nice melding of law and business, and I get to do that work in the context of an aerospace company, whose customers include the world’s leading airlines,” Costantini says. Pratt & Whitney is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines, space propulsion systems and industrial gas turbines.

Costantini provides legal support for any customer-related issue arising from airline customers based in the Asia-Pacific region, including support for major deals and sales campaigns, typically worth not less than $100 million, and his job takes him frequently to Asia, mostly China and Japan. “In 2006, just after I was hired, I spent a total of 14 weeks in China negotiating a joint venture deal with a leading Chinese airline for an engine overhaul facility,” he says. “I’ve had some remarkable opportunities to travel overseas and engage with people from cultures very different from ours.”

Those differences can create some real challenges, according to Costantini. “Beyond the obvious language barriers, there are cultural customs and sensitivities that must be taken into account,” he explains.

While in law school at Notre Dame, Costantini participated in the year-long London Program during his 2L year, and says it was an important precursor to his international approach to law. “My year attending law school in London was valuable on many levels,” he says. “I took classes from top British and American faculty, and had the opportunity to interact with practicing lawyers from around the world who were attending Notre Dame Law School’s LL.M. program; The LL.M. students took several classes with J.D. students. It was great networking with and learning from them.”

Costantini hopes to take his love of working with foreign businesses to the next level someday by taking an overseas assignment for his company, and would ultimately like to serve as a general counsel. “You have to aim for the top. If you don’t, you never know what you might have accomplished.”

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