Father Drinan, law professor and former congressman, gets ABA honor

Published: 2004-08-13

ATLANTA (CNS) -- Jesuit Father Robert F. Drinan, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center and a former member of Congress, received the American Bar Association's 2004 ABA Medal, the association's highest honor, Aug. 9 at the organization's annual meeting in Atlanta. The medal, which recognizes exceptional distinguished service to the cause of American jurisprudence, has been given since 1929 to some of the most important legal figures in American history, including eight Supreme Court justices. "In an amazing career that has spanned more than half a century, Father Drinan has never faltered in his extraordinary humanitarian efforts and support for justice under the law," said ABA president Dennis Archer, who presented the award. "He has demonstrated to lawyers what it means to be committed to public service and to countless law students what is embodied in the highest dedication to ethical, moral legal practice," Archer added. A professor at the Georgetown University Law Center since 1981, Father Drinan represented the Fourth District of Massachusetts in the House of Representatives from 1971 to 1981.

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