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School of Law Alumnus, Pierre Prosper

School of Law alumnus Pierre Prosper personifies the mission of Pepperdine which calls for the University to “strengthen students for lives of purpose, service and leadership.” As U.S. Ambassador-At-Large for war crimes issues, he holds a key position in the federal government and the impact of his work is felt around the world.

Previous to his appointment by President George W. Bush as Ambassador-At-Large for war crimes issues in 2001, Prosper served for three years as special counsel and policy adviser in the office of War Crimes Issues. Prior to that, from 1996 to 1998, he served as a war crimes prosecutor for the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, where, as lead prosecutor, he successfully prosecuted the first-ever case of genocide under the 1948 Genocide Convention.

Between 1994 and 1996, Prosper was an assistant United States attorney for the Central District of California in Los Angeles, where he investigated and prosecuted major international drug cartels as part of the Drug Enforcement Task Force. Prior to becoming an assistant U.S. attorney, he was a deputy district attorney for Los Angeles County.

Born in Denver, Colorado, and raised in New York State, Prosper received a bachelor’s degree from Boston College and his JD from Pepperdine University’s School of Law. In 2000, he was the recipient of the School of Law’s Distinguished Alumnus Award, and he was selected by Harvard Law School to be a 2000-01 Wasserstein Fellow. In 1999, he received the Alumni Award of Excellence in the field of Law from Boston College.

Prosper has not forgotten Pepperdine and returns to the University where he participates in presentations and discussions with School of Law students and members of the Pepperdine community.