Dundee students crowdfunding for International Court of Justice moot

Final year law students Niamh Sheridan, Lyndsey Franklin, Kasia Thomsonand Lottie Haley-Lee are preparing to compete in the Telders International Law Moot Court Competition. The moot sees teams from European universities plead a fictitious case before judges from the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Each year teams from more than 40 European universities compete in national rounds. The winning team from each country gets to represent their university and country in The Hague. Scottish universities have separate national rounds, but in 2015 there was no Scottish round – allowing the students to go straight to the international competition.

The mooting teams are presented with a case involving a dispute between two states. Each team has to represent both the applicant and the respondent state in conditions that simulate proceedings before the ICJ. This entails writing memorials and presenting oral arguments before a panel of judges.

The 2015 dispute concerns the interception of a vessel on the high seas and brings together different areas of international law which are often studied separately, such as freedom of navigation under UNCLOS, non-refoulement of forced migrants, state immunity, immunity of state officials, and jurisdiction over cases of torture. The dispute also raises interesting procedural questions such as standing before the court and the principle of indispensable parties.

The team said: “We are in the process of organising various fundraisers ourselves so any contribution is very greatly appreciated.

“The vast majority of national teams are sponsored by law firms, whose names appear in the Telder’s Organising Office programme and review report. We are really grateful for any support we can receive however, financial or not.”

Click here to visit the team’s page.