A Graduate Institute team has won first prize at the 2018 ELSA Moot Court Competition on WTO Law, held in Geneva from 19 to 23 June. Argyrios Papaefthymiou (Master in International Economics), Ioana-Virginia Motoc (Master in International Law), Sara Angeleska (Master in International Law) and Yannick Trudel (Master in International Affairs), coached by Panos Theodoropoulos (MIDS 2016-17) and Panagiotis Kyriakou (PhD in International Law) began working on the project , which simulates hearings in the WTO dispute settlement system, in September. They had to prepare written submissions to a mock case and compete in a European Regional Round in Wroclaw to secure a place in the Global Oral Round.

“It was a challenging experience”, said Sara. “Usually in practice, one is either a complainant or a respondent, but in a Moot Court you have to represent both sides, which requires a lot of time, effort, dedication and creativity.”

“Participating in the Moot Court was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life”, added Ioana. “I developed my oral and written advocacy skills, learnt how to draft a proper written submission and how to work as a team. But above all it was fun!”

“The Graduate Institute team’s success represents a fantastic achievement”, said Jan Bohanes, a former member of the Secretariat of the WTO’s Appellate Body. “There were almost 100 teams from universities from around the world, coached by experienced academics and experts, competing in front of demanding panelists who are the leading experts on WTO law, including Appellate Body Members.”  

Students interested in participating in the 2019 ELSA Moot Court Competition can visit the ELSA website where registration details will be published soon. A video with Argyrios, Ioana-Virginia, Sara and Yannick is below.