Successful participation of Leiden in the 2023 European Law Moot Court Competition
Three teams of students from the European Law Master (LLM) and the Advanced LLM in European and International Business Law (EIBL) participated in this year’s edition of the European Law Moot Court (ELMC). All teams worked intensively between September and November to submit written pleadings. Two of them qualified for the oral round and the regional finals (first part) of the competition.
Over the course of six weeks (January/February), the two teams practised intensively in bi-weekly training sessions, guided by their coaches and the many Europa Institute staff members that accepted to act as judges. A warm thanks to all for their commitment!
The LLM team, composed of Joost van Belois, Emmie Ladouès, Beatriz Neto and Milad Rosta, participated in the Bucharest regional final. The EIBL team, composed of Ema Kotecki, Eugénie Laurent and Sonja Turic, participated in the Lund regional final. Both regional finals were held from 23 to 25 February. In addition to the teams, Professor Christa Tobler and Professor Stefaan Van den Bogaert of the Europa Institute acted as judges in two other regional finals.
Although none of the two teams made it to the all-European Finals to be held in Luxembourg, both of them performed very well and achieved remarkable results. The LLM team qualified after the first round of pleadings and pleaded in the semi-finals. Ema Kotecki, acting as an Advocate General for the EIBL team, also qualified for the semi-finals. The ELMC coaches and the Europa Institute congratulate the teams for these successes.
This year’s ELMC case contained complex legal questions in various fields of EU substantive and procedural law: restrictive measures in the context of the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), environmental liability and citizenship.
The ELMC is the most prestigious moot court for European Law and Leiden Law School has a proud tradition of participating and winning prizes. Previous prizes won by students include Best Team (2013), Best Written Memorials (2015), Best Advocate General (2016), Best Advocate General (2020). This year’s teams were coached by Barbora Budinska, Vincent Delhomme, Moritz Jesse and Veronika Yefremova.
In the words of the mooties:
LLM Team
'We recall, in our first practice pleading session in Leiden, one of the judges on the bench told us that we would gain as much from this experience as we put in – and he was right. In fact, even more! At the beginning of the year, we even doubted our coaches, according to whom this would be the adventure of a lifetime - now we cannot but reiterate: the long hours and weekend group meetings at the University Library were definitely worth it.'
Eugénie Laurent :
'In my personal opinion, all the bad times, all the pre-pleading stress and anxiety, all the Sundays at the library, all the meetings leading up to nowhere, were completely erased by one moment: when the president of the Court gives you the floor.
When you hear “we will now hear the Applicant/ Defendant” and you stand up, you suddenly don't shake anymore. You breath in, and you breath out, and the pleading that you’ve been working on for weeks just goes as a flow.
And just like that, it's over. The only feeling remaining is happiness, gratefulness, and release. But most importantly, realising that those five years of studies are not for nothing as you really want to be a lawyer.'
Ema Kotecki:
'Determined to improve my fear of public speaking, joining the ELMC and preparing for moot court was the best exposure therapy I could have asked for. I am beyond grateful that the stressful practices led to greater confidence and the improvement has been evident when I have to give a presentation, or even in job interviews!
It was an incredible opportunity to meet so many different individuals from across the world, and I highly recommend participating.'
Sonja Turic:
'I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to participate in ELMC, which provided a unique and valuable experience both personally and professionally. It has been a true pleasure to meet so many EU law enthusiasts and I am especially proud of the hard work and efforts put forth by our team.'
Once again, congratulations to both teams for their great effort and successful participation!