World Jurist Association honors journalist for first time in its history

Martin Baron

The World Jurist Association, the international organization of judges, lawyers and legal scholars that is committed to strengthening and expanding the rule of law, will recognize the contributions of a journalist for the first time in its 60-year history. Created during the Cold War years by Chief Justice Earl Warren and the president of the American Bar Association, Charles Rhyne, the mission of the World Jurist Association is to promote peace through law.

Martin Baron, former top editor of The Washington Post, The Boston Globe and The Miami Herald, will receive the organization’s Medal of Honor, which recognizes individuals and institutions that promote the rule of law throughout the world.

“The phenomenon of disinformation today is contributing to the erosion of the world’s democratic institutions. Now more than ever, it is essential to highlight the importance of professional journalism and its indispensable contribution to our societies,” said Javier Cremades, president of the World Jurist Association. The organization, he said, sought to “recognize for the first time a journalist who represents journalistic independence and the value that investigative journalism contributes to society.”

The World Jurist Association is the oldest and most influential organization of jurists. Among its members are leading judges, legal scholars, prosecutors and practicing attorneys from around the world. The WJA will hold its 28th World Law Congress in New York on July 20 and 21. More than 300 world leaders will be speakers on 50 panels. The awards ceremony will be held at the United Nations.

During the ceremony, the World Peace & Liberty Award, considered to be the Nobel Prize in the field of law, will be presented to the European Commission and received by its president, Ursula von der Leyen. The Laudatio of the European Commission will be delivered by the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Previous awardees were Sir Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, René Cassin, King Felipe VI of Spain, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Colombian society (received by Iván Duque, then president of the country) and Andrew Young.

In addition to Baron, Medals of Honor will be awarded to the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs (to be represented by Miguel de Serpa Soares, the UN’s under-secretary general for Legal Affairs); Eric Adams, mayor of New York; David Mills, professor at Stanford University; Santiago Martínez Garrido, general secretary of Iberdrola; Brad Karp, chairman of the Paul Weiss law firm; and Jed S. Rakoff, senior judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

In addition, the WJA Ruth Bader Ginsburg Medal of Honor will be awarded to Rosalie S. Abella, former Supreme Court Justice of Canada. The award recognizes women lawyers who have broken through the glass ceiling while promoting gender equality, democracy and the rule of law.