Dean B. Pineles
Photo by Gillian Randall
Dean B. Pineles grew up in Hamilton, Massachusetts, where he attended school through sophomore year, then enrolled in Mount Hermon School, graduating in 1961. He then attended Brown University (1965) and Boston University School of Law (1968), following which he served in the US Army and then in the US Justice Department in Washington, DC.
In 1973, Dean and his wife Kristina Stahlbrand returned to New England, and Dean became an Assistant Attorney General in Vermont, representing the Department of Social Welfare. He presented one of his legal cases to the US Supreme Court. He then furthered his education at the Harvard Kennedy School, receiving a master’s degree in Public Administration in 1979, following which he became Deputy Commissioner and General Counsel with the Vermont Department of Health.
In 1981, he was appointed by the Governor as Commissioner of Labor and Industry, and then in 1982 as the Governor's Legal Counsel. In 1984, he was appointed to a judgeship on the Vermont District Court and served for 21 years until 2005.
Following his retirement, Dean became actively involved in international rule of law work, serving short term assignments as a Legal Adviser in Russia and Kazakhstan, and a year-long, residential assignment in the country of Georgia with the American Bar association Rule of Law Initiative (2008-09).
He was then appointed to an International Criminal Judgeship with the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo where he served for two and a half years (2011-13). There, he adjudicated cases involving war crimes, judicial corruption, narcotics trafficking, murder and human organ trafficking.
Since his return from Kosovo, he has lectured and written extensively about his experiences in that country. He and Kristina live in Stowe, Vermont.
