Deborah Isser

Deborah Isser joined the Rule of Law Center of Innovation in August 2004. She directs projects on the role of non-state justice systems in post-conflict societies and on addressing property claims in the wake of conflict. Previously, she was a senior policy adviser at the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where she focused on economic reform and efforts to address serious crime and corruption. From 2000 to 2001, she was a special adviser for the U.S. Mission to the U.N. She received the Department of State’s Distinguished Honor Award for her work on U.N. peacekeeping reform in the context of the Brahimi Report. She was also a member of the team responsible for settling U.S. arrears to the U.N.

From 1998 to 2000, Isser practiced law with the firm of Morrison and Foerster in New York. During that period she also co-founded the International Legal Assistance Network, which linked human rights lawyers overseas with U.S. law firms providing pro bono assistance. From 1996 to 1998, she served as judicial clerk to the Honorable Dalia Dorner of the Supreme Court of Israel. A recipient of several human rights fellowships, Isser worked at human rights organizations in Geneva, Cambodia and Washington, D.C. She also taught English and American history at a university in Kunming, China.

Isser received a J.D. from Harvard Law School, a master’s in law and diplomacy from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and an A.B. from Columbia University.

Publications:

• Land, Property and the Challenge of Return for Iraq's Displaced [2], coauthor, April 2009 USIP Special Report
• Combating Serious Crimes in Postconflict Societies: A Handbook for Policymakers and Practitioners [3], coauthor, edited by Colette Rausch (USIP Press, 2006).
• "Bosnia and Herzegovina," in Governments of the World: A Global Guide to Citizens' Rights and Responsibilities (Macmillan Reference USA, 2006).
• "Outsiders Can't Build a Nation for Bosnia [4]," Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (December 2005).