By Andrew Cohen
It doesn’t take long for recent UC Berkeley Law grads to climb the ranks and make a meaningful impact early in their wide-ranging careers. We periodically highlight standout alums who are shining across various practice areas in profiles that amplify what drew them to their current work, what they enjoy most about it, and their path to success.
He lived more than 8,000 miles away, but at times Ali Alabdali LL.M. ’23 felt like a next door neighbor given how much he knew about UC Berkeley Law. After deciding to pursue an LL.M. degree, he chose the school “due to its comprehensive and renowned public international law program, which hosts some of the most accomplished and skilled professors in the discipline.”
Alabdali is now legal consultant at the Permanent Mission of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations and represents his country in the U.N. General Assembly’s Sixth Committee, the primary forum that considers and examines legal questions in the General Assembly. In that role, he represents Saudi Arabia in meetings pertaining to international law — which touches on international criminal law, the law of the sea, international law relating to treaties and immunities, and more.
“I provide legal advice, deliver statements, represent Saudi Arabia in plenary meetings and informal consultations, and negotiate with other delegations on matters related to international law,” Alabdali says. “All of my projects undertaken in this role have been meaningful. They provide me with the opportunity to represent my country on the world stage in the field I am most passionate about while working with dedicated diplomats who are among the best in the field.”
That passion grew during his academic year in Berkeley’s LL.M. Program, where he joined the Berkeley Journal of International Law and earned an international law specialization certificate. He also gained vital experience outside the classroom, working with the school’s Human Rights Center as an open-source investigator on its legal investigations team.
A member of the Association of Young International Criminal Lawyers for more than five years, Alabdali relished meeting other lawyers from around the world — particularly his peers at Berkeley Law — learning from them, and developing close friendships along the way.
“They represented their respective countries’ best legal professionals, which motivated me to further develop my skills as a legal practitioner to best serve the profession and satisfy my own goals,” he says. “Additionally, I learned from professors who were experts in the fields wherein I intended to foster a career. Inspired by their passion and expertise, I chose to apply to new and unexpected opportunities, which positively contributed to my academic and practical development.”
A global perspective
After graduating with a law degree from City University of London in 2019, Alabdali returned home to join the firm Mazin Kurdi as a junior trial attorney and represented clients in criminal, commercial, enforcement, labor, and family courts. Following three years at the firm, he later interned in The Hague working for a legal defense team at the International Criminal Court.
“The most important aspect of that experience was being part of a brilliant team, which enabled me to learn valuable lessons from my colleagues and supervisors,” Alabdali says. “I was also fortunate enough to join the team during the trial phase of the case, therefore I experienced the forms and elements of procedure at an international court, bolstering my skill set and my confidence as a legal professional.”
During his time in Berkeley, he explored other types of international law, including dispute settlement and national security law. That fueled his decision to pursue the school’s international law certificate, which he says “helped me greatly in my current position in the Saudi Arabian Permanent Mission to the U.N.”
Alabdali recently delivered a statement before the Sixth Committee of the U.N. General Assembly on behalf of Saudi Arabia regarding the teaching and dissemination of international law. His remarks focused on the participation of Arabs in U.N. programs on international law to ensure equitable representation of every region in the field.
“We also encouraged the use of Arabic in these programs equally with the other official languages of the U.N.,” he says. “Lastly, we encouraged equal representation of lecturers from universities of Asia and the Pacific, particularly Arab states, to ensure the equal dissemination of international law.”
Having lived in Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Lebanon, Egypt, Spain, the Netherlands, Great Britain, France, and the United States, Alabdali felt right at home in UC Berkeley Law’s LL.M. Program — which had students from over 40 countries in his class last year.
“Living around the world enabled me to experience numerous systems of national law as well as international law, and Berkeley was a big part of that,” he says. “This has enhanced my practical skills in the field as I’ve tackled matters concerning the conduct of states nationally, which shape their international interests.”