In the mid-1980s, Maryknoll priest and former Foreign Minister of Nicaragua Father Miguel D’Escoto was a lead advocate in a historic case before the International Court of Justice. In its final verdict, the United States was found guilty of orchestrating acts of aggression in Nicaragua during the Contra guerrilla insurgency.

“It was not only a moral and political victory, but a vindication of Miguel’s underlying belief that international law, not violence, was the basis of peace and justice in the relations among nations,” wrote Richard Falk of Father D’Escoto, a counsel in the case.

The Inaugural Fr. Miguel D’Escoto Memorial Lecture, Spiritual Sources of Legal Creativity, will commemorate the legacy of the priest and diplomat through the memories and reflections of:

• Kevin M. Cahill, M.D., University Professor, Institute of International Humanitarian Affairs at Fordham University
• Ricard Falk, Professor Emeritus, Princeton University School of Law
• Ambassador Carlos Argüello Gómez, Agent of Nicaragua to the International Court of Justice and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps to the Kingdom of the Netherlands
• Martin S. Flaherty, Leitner Family Professor of Law, Fordham Law School
• H.E. Nassir Al Nasser, High Representative, United Nations Alliance