Rome, September 15, 2026

Yesterday afternoon, the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, received in audience the Board of Trustees of the World Jurist Association (WJA) and the World Law Foundation (WLF), together with their President, Javier Cremades.

On the occasion of the audience, the WJA announced its decision to bestow its highest honor, the World Peace and Liberty Award, upon President Mattarella. The award recognizes the extraordinary contribution he has made, both as a statesman and as a jurist, to the defense of the Rule of Law worldwide — the founding purpose of the WJA.

The award will be formally presented on May 5, 2027, during the World Congress the WJA will hold in Tirana, Albania, hosted by the Ministry of Justice of Albania and led by Minister Toni Gogu.

Taking part in the audience was Javier Cremades, President of the WJA and the WLF, who highlighted President Mattarella’s exceptional standing and the significance of publicly recognizing, at a moment when the Rule of Law is increasingly under challenge, the lifelong contribution he has made to its defense.

This tribute forms part of the WJA and WLF’s broader activity, which includes numerous initiatives alongside the organization of biennial World Congresses aimed at strengthening the Rule of Law in all its dimensions and across every region of the world.

The World Peace and Liberty Award, often described as the “Nobel Prize in Law,” is the highest honor granted by the WJA. It is awarded to world figures whose actions have strengthened democratic institutions, expanded the protection of human rights, or made a decisive contribution to peace through law. Past recipients include Sir Winston Churchill, René Cassin (principal drafter of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights), Nelson Mandela, H.M. King Felipe VI of Spain, and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, among other figures who have shaped the history of law and the defense of freedom worldwide.