University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law alumna Odile Prevot ‘92 recently received the Ordre National du Mérite, which is one of France’s highest civil distinctions. The Ordre National du Mérite recognizes significant contributions to France.

Prevot, an international business lawyer, is dual-qualified in the United Kingdom and France, with additional experience in the United States. She is a partner at Pierson Ferdinand, a firm she joined at the end of 2025. Pierson Ferdinand is a technology-driven, full-service international law firm that launched in January 2024.

Prevot said it was one of the largest law firm debuts in U.S. history, with over 280 partners across more than 80 practice areas. Her practice focuses on mergers and acquisition (M&A) and corporate law across multiple jurisdictions, including Paris, England and Wales. Before that, she served at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group and as a legal counsel for Africa in debt and equity transactions. Prior to IFC, she was a partner at her firm, OMLAW & Advisory Ltd in England after 16 years with PwC and KPMG where she worked with Olivia Lê Horovitz ’91. The pair both earned LLM degrees in Transnational Business Practice from McGeorge.

“This insignia of Chevalier of the French National Order of Merit is so richly deserved. Over the years, I have seen the energy, dedication and generosity with which you have devoted yourself to your missions, particularly in Cameroon and especially to helping children and those most in need,” Horovitz said.

Prevot said she was surprised and deeply moved when she found out getting the award. She also was elevated to the rank of knight and was presented with the insignia by the French Republic’s Minister of Justice Gerald Darmanin.

Additionally, Prevot served as volunteer CEO of the Serge Betsen Academy for 10 years. The Academy is dedicated to education, youth development, and empowerment of girls and women in West Africa. 

“During my tenure, I oversaw impactful programmes including supporting women's cooperatives in Cameroon, working with mothers who, armed with determination and agricultural resources, tripled their production,” she said. “I also championed the building of a school for girls in Bamako, Mali, driven by the belief that access to knowledge is access to freedom.”

She said she believes this honor reflects a career built at the intersection of law, international development, and social impact.

“I have tried throughout my career to demonstrate that corporate law is a powerful tool for social change,” Prevot said. “I think the recognition acknowledges not just a professional journey, but a commitment to using law to serve and to build bridges between Europe and Africa.”

She now serves as a Trustee of Foundation de France UK and as President of the Fédération des Associations Françaises en Grande-Bretagne (FAFGB) in London. 

“I received this distinction with immense pride and immense humility,” Prevot said. “When you spend years working across jurisdictions, building schools, supporting cooperatives and navigating the complexities of international law while trying to make a tangible difference, you do not do it with an award in mind.” 

Prevot said the award means that the French Republic recognizes an engagement built far from the beaten path, in service of those who are too often overlooked. She intends to continue championing access to education for women in West Africa, to pursue investment and development work there and to demonstrate that international business law should be a force for equity and justice.

“Justice, to me, is not only what happens in courts and contracts, but also what gives every person, wherever they were born, the means to stand tall,” Prevot said. “That is why I chose law.”