President Biden Nominates MBU Alumna to Key Foreign Policy Role

This week, President Joe Biden announced Jamie Lindler Harpootlian ’81, a Mary Baldwin graduate and accomplished attorney, as the nominee for ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Republic of Slovenia.

Accomplished attorney Jamie L. Harpootlian ’81 is President Joe Biden’s nominee for ambassador to Slovenia. Photo credit: Harpootlian Attorneys at Law

Currently counsel to the South Carolina law firm of Richard A. Harpootlian, PA, Harpootlian advises on a broad range of federal litigation matters. She has previously served as a court-appointed special master to facilitate case resolution in complex, mass disaster class actions. 

The Department of Justice, Civil Division, appointed Harpootlian to serve as a hearing officer on the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund of 2001. Serving in this role pro bono, she conducted non-adversarial hearings with surviving victims to make recommendations on their eligibility and compensation. 

Prior to her appointments, Harpootlian served 17 years as a career judicial law clerk in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, New Orleans, where she provided legal advice to the court to assist in making decisions in civil and criminal actions. 

A leader and patron of many non-profit groups, she supports causes including the environment, the arts, and historic resources.  

Harpootlian earned her BA cum laude in political science and art history from Mary Baldwin in 1981 and was also elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She then received her JD from Tulane University Law School in New Orleans in 1984.

Biden’s nominations for ambassadorships will now need to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate before they take on their roles.

A central European country of 2.1 million people, Slovenia is bordered by Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia. Recent ambassadors to Slovenia have included career diplomats and representatives from fields such as architecture and business.