32nd edition of the Telders International Law Moot ... - marc-steiner.ch

Telders International LawMoot Court CompetitionReview32nd Edition of theTelders International LawMoot Court CompetitionThe Hague, 16 to 18 April 2009Telders Organizing Office

Table of ContentsForeword by the Supervisory Board of the Telders International Law 4Moot Court Competition FoundationMembers of the Supervisory Board 5Foreword by the Telders Student Society for International Law 6Legacy of Professor Dr. B.M. Telders 7National Rounds Teams 8Teams Sponsors 12Participating Teams 13International Board of Review 24Judges of the Semi-Finals 26Judges of the Final 30Jury for Best Oralist 31Helping Hands 32ReviewsWinning Team 2009—University of Novi Sad 33Finalist Team— University of Vienna Law School 35Winner Best Oralist Award: Laurens Miserus 36Best Memorial for the Respondent: University of Bucharest 37Best Judge Award: Marc Steiner 38Students for Students Award: The Honorable Society of Kings Inns 39Final Results 2009 40Awards and Prizes 2009 42Acknowledgements 44page2

DedicationThe Telders Organizing Office wishes to express its sincere gratitude to all sponsors, participantsand guests. Without their attendance, dedication and input, the 32 nd edition of the TeldersInternational Law Moot Court Competition would not have been possible.THE TELDERS ORGANIZING OFFICE 2009Danaë Daal, Arista Bek, Mette Léons, Claudia Italiander, Christine Tremblay3

FOREWORDIn 2009 the Telders International Law Moot Court Competition was held in The Hague for the32 nd time.Since 1977 the format and scale of the Competition have changed dramatically.This year, the Competition received a total of 45 registrations from universities across Europe.Ultimately 25 teams from 24 European countries took part in the International Semi-Finals inThe Hague. For the first time, the Finals were staged in the unique and modern setting of theAcademy Hall of the Peace Palace.The teams who took part in the Competition faced the Mare Liberum Case which involved issuesof public international law, including the law of the sea, the law of treaties and internationalenvironmental law.The Supervisory Board and the Telders Organizing Office wish to express their heartfeltgratitude to our sponsors who have pledged their support to the Competition in so many ways.The Supervisory Board would like to thank all the talented teams who have taken part in theCompetition, all the erudite panelists, the members of the International Board of Review as wellas the members of the jury who donated their time. Once again they made the TeldersCompetition a most enjoyable and edifying event!Bengt BromsChairman of the Supervisory Board4

Supervisory BoardTelders International Law Moot Court Competition FoundationH.E. Judge Bengt Broms, ChairmanH.E. Judge Krzysztof J. SkubiszewskiH.E. Judge Kenneth KeithH.E. Judge Bruno SimmaH.E. Judge Leonid SkotnikovH.E. Judge Peter TomkaProf. Dr. John DugardProf. Dr. Nico SchrijverMrs. J.M. ThuránszkyMr. drs. Rolf Oosterloo MPAMs. Mette Léons LL.M.Iran-US Claims TribunalPresident, Iran-US Claims TribunalInternational Court of JusticeInternational Court of JusticeInternational Court of JusticeInternational Court of JusticeLeiden UniversityLeiden UniversityClifford ChanceCampus The Hague / Leiden UniversityTelders Organizing Office5

FOREWORDThe first Telders Competition was organised in 1977 to mark the 30 th anniversary of the TeldersStudent Society, which had been established in Leiden in 1947. In that year, three countries fromWestern Europe (France, Germany and the Netherlands) entered the Competition. The Judgeswere H.E. Lachs, H.E. Singh and H.E. Tarazi of the International Court of Justice.The success of the first Telders Competition inspired the Telders Society for International Lawto continue. Henceforth, a great tradition was born which lasts till this very day. The warmrelations with the International Court of Justice still enable the organization to use the premisesof the most important judicial organ in the world. Moreover, students from every corner ofEurope have found their way to the ‘City of Peace of Justice’ that the city of The Hague hasbecome over the years.The success of the Competition has reached such a magnitude that it became harder for theSociety to organize the event by itself. Since 2004 the management has been put in the hands ofthe Campus The Hague – Leiden University, which enabled its further expansion andprofessionalisation. We would like to thank the Telders Organizing Office for enabling studentsfrom all over Europe to meet each other and experience the legacy of Professor Telders.The Telders Student Society for International Law6

National Rounds TeamsEnglandDurham UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Holly CullenMr. Stuart BlacklockMs. Emma BeattyMs. Rachel MorrisUniversity College LondonTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Barrie SanderMr. Sahib SinghMr. George McBrideMs. Charlotte Pope-WilliamsMs. Alexia SolomouMs. Jelia SaneCoventry UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Nicholas SquiresMs. Laura BrawnMr. Philip KitchenMr. Horace RadcliffMr. Dharmendra ToorUniversity of SussexTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Paul EdenMr. Dean AndrewsMr. Neil Iain BarlowMr. Andrew John DuncanMs. Caitlin LambooUniversity of LincolnTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Jan Erik WetzelMs. Tracy BirdMs. Zoe EvansMr. Akpomeyoma EsirorieMr. Neil Mackey8

University of NottinghamTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Nicola ConsentinoMr. David JenkinsMs. Premila PatelMr. Philip GodfreyMs. Ridhima KapoorUniversity of SheffieldTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Sorcha MacLeodMr. Henry JonesMs. Barbara WebbMr. Connor JohnstonMr. Duncan WatsonGeorgiaGeorgian Technical UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Nino SarishviliMs. Gvantsa DavitashviliMs. Gvantsa MeunargiaMs. Qetevan CincadzeMr. Aleqsandre DevidzeIrelandTrinity College DublinTeam coach:Team members:Mr. John AhernMs. Julie AzoulaiMr. Mark HurstMs. Sarah ReaveyRomaniaWest University of TimişoaraTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Lucian BojinMr. Cezar AndreiMs. Rodica CalinMr. Dan DorogaMs. Silvana Stoianov9

Russian FederationPeoples' Friendship University of Russia (PFUR)Team coach:Team members:Mr. Alexey S. TumantsevMs. Alla GolovinaMs. Olga PonomarevaMs. Galya BagdashkinaMs. Julia ZhelesnyakovaUkraineKyiv International UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Kristina NechayevaMs. Anastasiia KarebaMr. Maksym IavorskyiMr. Borys ShcherbynaMr. Mykhailo LatynskyiThe National University of “Ostroh Academy”Team coach:Team members:Ms. Yuliya BerezyukMs. Iryna MospaniukMs. Olena MykhalchukMr. Yuriy RadkoMr. Iryna PetskoNational Law Academy of Ukraine named after Yaroslav the WiseTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Tetyana KomarovaMs. Olga SendetskaMs. Maryna ChernovaMs. Olena MetelkinaMr. Anton SotirKharkiv State University named after V.N. KarazinTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Moskalenko Olexander MikhailovichMs. Kravchuk Yelyzaveta AnatolievnaMs. Kravchenko AnastasiaMs. German Ekaterina YurienvaMr. Pushay Andriy Volodomirovich10

Academy of Advocacy of UkraineTeam coach:Team members:Professor Kovalenko NataliaMr. Viniychuk VladislavMr. Simonchuk NikitaMr. Karapetyan AlexanderMr. Lavrenchuk VladislavOdessa National Academy of LawTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Pavlo VoitovichMr. Dmytro KovalMs. Nadiia ViazankinaMs. Daria AvtenukMr. Anthony Alnashir11

The Telders Organizing Office would like to express its gratitude to the followingorganisations for sponsoring the teams of:AustriaFiebinger, Polak, Leon & Partners, Attorneys-at-Law GmbHAustrian Federal Ministry of European & International AffairsAustrian Federal Ministry of Science & ResearchAustrian Federal Ministry of the InteriorAustrian National BankBelarusBelarusian State UniversityOSCE office in MinskEstoniaThe University of TartuLaw Firm Luiga Mody Hääl BoreniusFinlandMinistry of Justice, Ministry of the Environment, Finish Lawyer Association,Roschier Attorneys Ltd.France“Ambassade de France au Pays-Bas” (French Embassy in the Netherlands)MaltaParkhotel, The HagueRussian Federation“Lex-Invest” Law FirmSlovakiaBratislavská vysoká škola práva - Bratislava School of LawPortugalFaculty of Law of Universidade Nova de LisboaRomaniaSchoenherr & Asociatii Law FirmBulboaca & Asociatii Law FirmUniversity of Bucharest, Faculty of LawSerbiaRegional Secretary for Education, Autonomus Province of Vojvodina“DDOR Novi Sad” a.d.o. Joint Stock Company for Insurance and Reinsurance“ JAT Airways” a.d. Belgrade12

PARTICIPATING TEAMS FOR THE SEMI-FINALS 2009AustriaUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Alexander BreiteggerMr. Peter BachmayerMr. Tomasz HaraMr. Gregor NovakMr. Max Wälde-SinigojBelarusBelarusian State UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Alla ZybailoMs. Yauheniya AndreyukMs. Marina GolovnitskayaMs. Dziana MubarakshynaMr. Raman Ramanouski13

BulgariaSofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”Team coach:Team members:Mr. Blagoy VidinMr. Atanas SabevMs. Petya PishmishevaMr. Svilen TashevMr. Teodor VoinikovEnglandKing’s College LondonTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Qudsi RasheedMr. Soroush KafiabadiMr. Sajid SulemanMr. Aqeel Hasan NooraliEstoniaUniversity of TartuTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Katre LuhamaaMs. Marika KüttMs. Helen GinterMs. Marja-Liisa LaatsitMr. Chirag ModyMs. Maria Teder14

FinlandUniversity of HelsinkiTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Ilona NieminenMrs. Paula Sammaljārvi-RobertsonMr. Ville-Petteri PeltokorpiMr. Adam Roderick HunterMr. Mark ThuillierFranceUniversité Paul Cézanne Aix-Marseille IIITeam coach:Team members:Ms. Hana MissaouiMr. Thomas MargueritteMs. Sabrina TouchardMs. Anaïs FaureMs. Florentine GuinotMr. Quentin Vassas15

GeorgiaGeorgian American UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Tamar GoderdzishviliMs. Tinatin TsanavaMs. Nazo DakishviliMs. Mariam BakradzeMr. David KortavaGermanyUniversität zu KölnTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Britta KringsMr. Johannes FuhrmannMs. Anna von HarnierMs. Nimalka RohnsMs. Andrea StruweMr. Erik Pellander16

GreeceDemocritus University of ThraceTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Constantine AntonopoulosMr. Alexander SarrisMr. Konstantinos TromvoukisMr. Athanasios-Georgios DanelianMs. Eleana KypriotakiMs. Athena PsarakiHungaryEötvös Loránd University BudapestTeam coach:Team members:Prof. Peter RonaMr. Áron AlbertMr. Gábor Bálint BodokiMr. József KissMr. Bence Spiczmüller17

RomaniaUniversity of BucharestTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Enache Lorena IoanaMs. Adina RaducanuMs. Ioana Selena StanMs. Ruxandra Lucia FrangetiMr. Adrian RusuRussian FederationMoscow State UniversityTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Yulia SarviroMs. Anna VoronovaMs. Dina LitvinaMr. Ilya Romashevskiy20

SerbiaUniversity of Novi SadTeam coach:Team members:Mr. Andrej KalmarMs. Dragana MitrićMr. Vladislav DjanićMs. Jelena KerezovićMs. Maša KojićScotlandUniversity of EdinburghTeam coach:Team members:Dr. James HarrisonMs. Fiona ToddMr. Stephen BaileyMs. Yara SaabMs. Briana West21

SlovakiaBratislava School of LawTeam coach:Team members:Mgr. Katarína MikulováMs. Jana BerecováMr. Tomáš MészárosMs. Miroslava HulvanováMs. Friederike StoeckerSwedenUppsala UniversitetTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Maria AgiusMs. Frederike KlankMr. Måns SjöstrandMs. Linda AspehultMr. Florian Feistle22

SwitzerlandUniversity of St. GallenTeam coach:Team members:Ms. Marie-Louise Gächter-AlgeMr. Stefan WehrleMr. David RechsteinerMr. Simon BühlerMr. Nathanael HuwilerUkraineNational University of Kyiv-Mohyla AcademyTeam coach:Team members:Dr. Myroslava AntonovychMs. Iryna GlushchenkoMs. Kateryna BondarMs. Stanislava IlchenkoMs. Alina Sviderska23

INTERNATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEWDr. Olympia BekouMrs. Nadia BernazMs. Ruxandra CostacheDr. iur Dieter FleckMr. Dinko DinevMs. Rashin Forotan fard, LL.M.Mr. Pierre HarcourtMr. William HendersonMr. Andrew HolmesDr. Irmantas JarukaitisDr. Urfan KhaliqProf. Jan KlabbersMr. Rain LiivojaProf. Dr. Frank MaesDr. Nele Matz-Lveck LL.M.Ms. Kerstin MechlemProf. Dr. Neri Sybesma-KnolMs. Zeldine O'BrienLecturer in Law, School of Law, University of NottinghamMiddlesex University Business School Law DepartmentLecturer University of BucharestFormerly Director for International Agreements & Policy,Federal Ministry of Defence, Germany; HonoraryPresident, International Society for Military Law and theLaw of WarAssistent Lecturer Sofia University “St Kliment Ohridski”Junior judgeUniversity of EdinburghLecturer in Law, Glasgow Caledonian UniversityBroad Chare ChambersLecturer in the Department of International andEuropean Union Law, Vilnius UniversityCardiff UniversityUniversity of HelsinkiGlobal Governance Research Centre, University ofHelsinkiUniversiteit GentMax Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law andInternational LawLecturer in Human Rights and International Law at theTransitional Justice Institute at the University of UlsterVrije Universiteit BrusselSeminarist for International Law, Trinity College DublinMr. Francisco Pereira CoutinhoMr. Michael Perez, LL.M.Assistant Professor, Faculdade de Direito da UniversidadeNova de LisboaTrainee judge24

Dr. Thilo RensmannMs. Sofia SarenkovaMr. Christoph ScheweDr. iuris Constanze SemmelmannMs. Kateryna TkachenkoDr. Nikolaos TsagouriasProf. László ValkiMr. René VärkInstitut für Internationales Recht, Lehrstuhl fürpffentliches Recht, Völker- und Europarecht3 rd Secretary, Legal Department, Ministry of ForeignAffairs of the Russian FederationDAAD-fachlektor für Rechtwissenschaft, University ofTartuInstitut für Völker und Europarecht, University ofFribourgAssociate at Baker & Mckenzie, CIS LimitedUniversity of BristolProfessor of International Law, Eötvös University,BudapestDirector for Academic Affairs; Lecturer of InternationalLaw, University of TartuDr. Angela WilliamsDr. Stephan WittichLecturer International Environmental Law, University ofSussexAssistant Professor at the University of Vienna25

JUDGES SEMI-FINALSMr. Jan BangertMs. Darcy Beamer-DownieMr. E.E. van Bemmelen van Gent, LL.M.Dr. Andrea CarcanoMs. Axelle Cartier, LL.M. (adv)Mr. Wilko Tijsse ClaaseMs. Barbara ConcolinoProf. Wladyslaw CzaplinskiMr. Roderick van DamMr. M.K EshraghProf. Steven FreelandMrs. Mireya FreidenbergMr. Matthew GillettMs. Christel HägglundMs. Esther HauserMr. Nobuo HayashiMr. Gleider HernándezDr. Bernhard Hofstötter, LL.M.(adv)Dr. Jiefang HuangMr. Mark Ierace S.C.Prof. Maria del Angel IglesiasBöckli Bodmer & Partners Attorneys-At-LawAirclaims - General CounselThe Hague University/Founder andDirector of the Bynkershoek InstituteUniversity of MilanGeneral Counsel - Europe, ExcaliburAlmaz Ltd.Port of AmsterdamIran-US Claims TribunalInstitute of Law StudiesHead of Legal Services, EUROCONTROLOrganisation for the Prohibition of ChemicalWeaponsUniversity of Western SydneyFreidenberg, Freidenberg & LifsicInternational Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaIran-United States Claims TribunalBezirksgericht BülachInternational Peace Research Institute,Oslo (PRIO)International Court of JusticeLegal Officer, Office of The EuropeanOmbudsmanInternational Civil Aviation Organization(UN Specialized Agency)New South Wales Public Defenders' OfficeEstudio Juridico Alfa Tres26

Prof. Avv. Elisabeth Back ImpallomeniDr. Martha Mejia-KaiserMr. Fredrik KämpfeMrs. Marion Kappeyne van de CoppelloProf. Dr. Vladimír KopalMr. Dino KritsiotisDr. Petúr LeifssonMs. Donna LawlerMrs. Tanja Masson-ZwaanMs. Gaelle NiddamMs. Therese O'DonnellMr. Mayur PatelDr. H. PiranMr. Thomas Wayde PittmanDr. Olivier RibbelinkProf. Dr. C.G. RoelofsenMr. Daniel J. Russell, LL.M.Dr. Attila SiposProf. Dr. Thomas SkouterisMr. Marc SteinerMr. Peter TannhäuserMr. Gauthier Van ThuyneMr . Michail VagiasUniversity of Padua, Department ofInternational StudiesIndependent ResearcherEuropean Aviation Safety AgencyAmbassador Netherlands Embassy in BogotaFaculty of Law, West Bohemian UniversityUniversity of NottinghamUniversity of AkureyriSingTel Optus Pty LimitedDeputy Director, International Institute ofAir & Space Law, Leiden UniversityEurojustStrathclyde UniversityInternational Criminal Court, VisitingProfessional (Office of the Prosecutor)Iran-U.S. Claims TribunalInternational Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaT.M.C. Asser InstituteUtrecht University (retired)Legal ConsultantLegal Director of Hungary ControlAmerican University in CairoJudge, Federal Administrative Court, SwitzerlandDeputy Head of Legal Services, EUROCONTROLAllen & Overy LLPLeiden University27

Ms. Philippa WebbMr. W.T. Worster B.A., J.D., LL.M.Ms. Mia WoutersYale Law SchoolThe Hague University's InternationalBachelor of Law Program, FellowBynkershoek InstituteLVP LAW & UGENT28

JUDGES OF THE FINALSaturday, 18 April 2009at the Academy Hall, Peace PalaceH.E. Judge A. KoromaPresidentProf. S. FreelandProf. Dr. Jhr. F.A.M. Alting von Geusau30

JURY FOR THE BEST ORALISTMr. Otto Spijkers(President of the Jury)Ms. Natasa AplikiotouMr. Andreas BachMr. Ton BerbenPhD Candidate Grotius Centre forInternational Legal Studies, Leiden UniversityInternational Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaSwiss ReAKD Prinsen van Wijmen N.V.Ms. Dalida ChrysostomidouMs. Dagmar DaalMr. Adam GellertMs. Anna GouwenbergMs. Karima HaraMr. Paul HuberMr. Moritz MoelleThe International Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaErasmus UniversityThe International Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaResearch Assistant Grotius Centre for InternationalLegal Studies, Leiden UniversityAKD Prinsen van Wijmen N.VGrotius Centre for International LegalStudies, Campus The Hague, Leiden UniversityLL.M. (adv) Student Leiden University31

Mr. Laurens MolMs. Armelle LodeMs. Adilah NasirMr. Sven PfeifferMs. Judith SandrimanMr. Sagar S.P. SingamsettyMr. Bart Smit DuijzentkunstMs. Suzanna RiemMs. Aurelie RocheMs. Rahel WeingärtnerMs. Aimee WisemanMr. Antigoni XagorarakiLeiden UniversityLL.M. (adv) Student Leiden UniversityInternational Criminal CourtInternational Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaMinistry of Transport and Water ManagementDHO Express Legal, TNT Head Office B.V.International Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaInternational Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaInternational Criminal CourtLL.M. (adv) Student Leiden UniversityInternational Criminal CourtInternational Criminal Tribunal for theformer YugoslaviaHELPING HANDSThe smooth running of the Telders Competition 2009 would have not been possible without thevaluable assistance and support of the following helping hands:Rein FerwerdaAli Al-GarawahithRaquel GeerlingsJo-Anne da Costa GomezMariana HilkerSussena HortenciaElliot RomijnNaveed TaniwalIram Velji32

REVIEWSWINNING TEAMUniversity of Novi Sad, SerbiaThis Tale begins not once upon the time but in the late November 2008, when the idea ofparticipating in the Telders Moot Court Competition was born. This decision came rather lateand consequently the very first deadline we had to meet was a seemingly insurmountableobstacle, we had only a few weeks to choose a team! After short period of time the team wasformed: the Chosen ones were three fair ladies and a good sir.Once elected, the team rapidly stepped up and began the research. The crew had cheerfulmeetings at least twice a week, for a great amount of time was lost in vain and unintentionally, wegave the other teams had a head-start. The law of the sea as the central issue in the case, was amystery for the team members, coming from a land-locked state. Consequently, there was anumber of topics we knew nothing about, but this was skilfully disguised with long andinexhaustible discussions. Luckily for the crew, this was precisely what the work process required– a good debate, an exchange of thoughts and ideas on how to tackle the issues before us.Once introduced to all relevant aspects of the law of the sea, the team, altogether with thediligent coach, began the real work. As original drafts were further developed, they began to takeon the form of a Memorial. After initial problems were overcome, other hardship came rushingdown, the leading one being: meeting the deadline of January the 12 th . This, however, is onedeadline the team did manage to meet. The memorials were wrapped up, shaped up, printed,and sent to the Netherlands. For a moment there the team was relieved…Naturally, after exhaustion in January the team took a break, though only in order to study forour exams in February. Meanwhile, the Coach was faced with administrative demons: findingsponsors, organizing preparations for oral round, and postponing the participation fee paymentdeadline. This in its nature cannot be a pleasant task. Due to the patience and kindness of theTOO this was accomplished.After the February exam season ended, the team meet up once again to begin preparations forthe oral round. Meeting up to three times per week, we tried to polish our oral presentation andacquaint our selves with all the niceties and formalities of addressing The Court.As April approached and all necessary papers and visas were collected, the team hit the road andeventually got to the Netherlands. Once there, everything was seemingly frightening at first. Thiswas just a nervous scare that we’ll get caught by stage-fright. After couple of friendly chats withother teams, everyone was officially at ease, though.The semi-finals were extremely pleasant. This came as something of a surprise, since we weremooting newbies, and expected a much more rigid atmosphere. During the semi-finals we metsome extraordinary people from all over the Globe. In a competitive yet rather friendly mood wespent two days in the great Peace Palace, through which we walked in awe. In the competition wefaced teams from Hungary, Austria, Germany and France. We couldn’t have guessed that inthose rounds we’d face the finalist, and let alone be finalists.As second day of the competition was ending, we were taken to Leiden to hear names of thefinalists. Naturally, we had our favourites we’d bet on. It most certainly was not our team. Oncethe Mayor of Leiden explained the peculiar situation which led to our participation in the finals,we experienced something we thought was reserved for daring dreams. As it turned out we wereto face the team of Austria the next day at ten o’clock – the same brilliant team we met in ourfirst pleadings. After the initial shock, first thoughts were -Aren't we supposed to party tonight?And there was a party indeed…Ten a.m. came and it was time for the finals. As the Academy Hall seated the audience, anxietycame crawling in. The panel of Judges was announced and awestruck with this announcement,the entire team was left speechless. Luckily, only until the round began.33

Speaking in front of the esteemed Judges was scary enough, without knowing that everyone youmet and saw in the previous days was behind you, interested in what you’re saying. This was noteased by the excellence with which our opponents pleaded the case. As the discussion about thecase developed, all the bad emotions such as fear and anxiety were replaced with fulfilling joy ofactually being part of the final and being there, in front of the microphone. This was truly aunique experience.After the surrebuttal, everything fell into its ordinary place. Members of the Austrian team onceagain became the most pleasant people and not just our opponents. A group photo was takenand we forgot that we still have a road ahead of us. This feeling of burden falling off of our chestlasted however only until the entrance in the Academy hall for the ceremony.When H.E. Judge Koroma pronounced our team's name as the winner, we sat there in disbelief.Confused with how things developed and with what was taking place around us, we forgot tostand up and receive the Telders Cup. Many sounds surrounding us merged in the loud buzznoise. Finally, we came around and officially became winners of the Telders Moot CourtCompetition 2009. Funny thing is, once received the Cup, we worried about customs andwhether we will have problems on the entrance to the plane. This, naturally, was not an actualproblem.The aftermath came with cocktails and party and great amount of celebration. This experiencewas not only challenging, daring and teaching but it appeared to be one of the most fruitfulexperiences of our lives if not the single most fruitful and fulfilling one.During studies, moot court competition is a must and Telders Moot Court Competition is theright address to go to. This year’s organization was remarkable, even though we were allsomewhat saddened by the fact that the finals were not held in the Great Hall of Justice.Hereby, we would like to express our gratitude to the TOO for making it possible for all of uswho were part of Telders 2009 to share this adventure as well as to greet all outstanding peoplewe met during our stay in The Hague. This has been invaluable, breath-taking experience thatonly few things could possibly outshine. And that is how the Tale has ended for us – with ahappy ending.34

Our Experience as the FINALIST TEAMUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolA review of our team’s experiences of the 2009 Telders International Moot Court ought to beginwith the award ceremony in the historic Leiden City Hall. The four team members and twocoaches from the University of Vienna Law School’s team joined the other participants andjudges in awaiting the announcement of this year’s final scores of the Telders International MootCourt. To our positive surprise, both the best results for the Applicant and the Respondent sidewere obtained by our team. In toasting to this success all of us could rejoice in the fact that aftermany months of enriching, insightful, hard and fun research into the depths of publicinternational law and the fictitious Grotius Sea each team member could feel rewarded for hiscontribution to the team-effort.While the University of Vienna Law School team, exceptionally, consisted entirely of malestudents in 2009, it was otherwise far from homogenous: our four team members and coachescould collectively communicate in six different languages and had, despite representing theUniversity of a landlocked country, already bathed in all five world oceans. Moreover, all of uscould appreciate the pleasures of sailing, fishing and an occasional sustainably procured tunasteak.Our preparation phase was greatly aided by the experiences and intelligent guidance of our twocoaches, Mr. Breitegger and Mr. Schicho, who managed, from the beginning of the Competition,to create an environment within our team which was conducive to systematic research andconstant efforts throughout the difficult phase of preparing the written memorials and preparingstrategies for the oral argumentation. At the end of our efforts, all of us could agree that takingpart in the Telders Moot Court has contributed as much, if not more, to our legal education asthe traditional classes we have had to abstain from. Thus, we think it’s important to do theutmost to spread the word about this unique international competition among our peers.When coming to The Hague, we were impressed with the smooth organization and friendly staffof the Telders Organising Committee and the quality and diversity of the judges, the jury as wellas the participants coming from 25 different universities. Despite the fact that the short four daysin The Hague were filled with a competitive program, our team members did their best to dividetheir time equally between contributing to the proceedings as well as getting to know new friendsand law students from across Europe and beyond, reserving time for sleep for the flight backhome. We all left The Hague with a sincere wish to stay in touch in the future, wherever ourprofessional and personal lives may take us.In essence, there was something that united our team internally and that also united andcontinues to unite the participants of the 2009 Telders International Moot Court Competition: anappreciation of some of the crucial legal and political questions of our time and the willingness todedicate our time and energy to pursue solutions to these questions while working togethercooperatively in an international setting. From this perspective, we are all the winners of the 32ndEdition of the Telders International Law Moot Court. In conclusion, we consider thiscompetition to have been a highly rewarding experience for us and can only wish this institutiona long and successful future.35

Winner BEST ORALIST AWARDLaurens Miserus, Utrecht UniversityTelders 2009. I will remember this competition as the most intriguing part of my internationallaw master programme. Participating in a moot court is an obligatory part of the curriculum andusually there are two options. You either participate in the regular moot court offered at UtrechtUniversity or you join the Jessup moot court team - another international competition. Since Ialready had some in-class experience the latter seemed to me an interesting option. However,after a short interview I was not admitted - ironically perhaps? - on the Jessup team which wasput together specifically with the aim of ensuring a strong oral performance.Shortly after, I got the news that a team was being put together for Telders, which Ienthusiastically joined; it was to be a long and bumpy ride. Working together on the memorial sointensely with three other students from different backgrounds, with very different characters andwith such different expectations turned out to be quite the undertaking. Considering the shorttime-span available to complete the written submissions, there was little time to sit back andevaluate the whole proceeding. As a result, all four of us were in a state of near-desperation whenthe deadline approached. The horror I felt when riding home to my new apartment after finallyfinishing the memorial and noticing that the street parallel to mine was – ominously - called the‘Telderslaan’ is both indescribable and hard to imagine by now. In any case, the first part of thecompetition was over and a lot of knowledge on international law gained.Then, after a short break, came the preparations for the oral presentations. This consisted ofweekly meetings at which we discussed our arguments and at several occasions practiced theactual pleading in front of different observers. This turned out to be very useful since it reallydoes take some time to naturally present as an agent of state with all the formalities and correct(legal) phrasing involved.In fact, I was surprised to find that during the finals in The Hague little attention was paid to theoccasional presentation given in the first person. Not knowing what to expect in advance, thiswas definitely a relieve. It was the single tolerated exception though. Being the last speaker onbehalf of the respondent, I had plenty of time to get nervous before it was my turn. Although notalways successful I made an attempt to stick to those parts of the pleadings we prepared which Iknew were most solid, and above all not to be thrown off balance by the interruptions of thejudges. To remain calm, answer questions appropriately, and integrate those answers in thegeneral submission was at the same time an interesting challenge as well as the most difficult partof the pleadings.What I was also surprised about was the fact that for a few days, judges, lawyers, and otherexperts of international law from all over the world had found their way to the Peace Palace aswell. And not just that, they also seemed to be going out of their way to get in touch with theparticipating students, supporting them, discussing international law issues, or simply makingsmall talk. Even Judge Koroma of the ICJ presided over the final round and strolled aroundafterwards open for a chat or to get his picture taken. I discovered that many of the judges therehad participated in moot court competitions themselves at some point and felt genuinelyinvolved. Receiving a compliment from one of these people is without a doubt the greatest awardan international law student can take home from these events. To all who agree with me thatbridging the gap between students of international law and (successful and inspiring) practitionersin order to give the students a push in the right direction is one of the main gains of moot courtcompetitions, I can say that as far as I – and with me many other participants – am concerned,Telders 2009 was a laudable success.As for next year, all four students from the University Utrecht team have decided to help wherepossible with setting up another Telders team. Perhaps it’ll help other students enjoy the sameexperience we’ve had.36

I believe it will suffice to mention my fellow team members only shortly, for everyone everhaving participated in a similar event will know exactly what I mean when I say that without themit had been impossible for me to still be standing after the spitfire of sarcastic comments, jokesthat somehow were questions, and cunning attempts at tricking us into pleading against our owncase that we got from the benches. Sabin Dragoman, Nanette Boers and Disa Jironet Loewe,thank you so very much for this experience.Winner of the EUROCONTROL AWARD Best Memorial for the RespondentUniversity of BucharestWinning the EUROCONTROL Award meant a lot to our team. It was, in fact, the reflection ofa fortunate mixture of our team members' qualities: determination, originality, hard work and,perhaps the most important, loads of enthusiasm. Friendship was the bond between all these.The team was born gradually – first, our coach, Lorena Enache, a former participant to mootcourt competitions, thought about two students with experience in moot courts who could bringthis advantage into the team: Adina Raducanu and Selena Stan. Then, two other well-preparedstudents were added to complete a balanced and ambitious quartet: Ruxandra Frangeti andAdrian Rusu. From this moment on we acted as a team and worked together under the carefulscrutiny of our coach, who guided us all the way to the final round.Our first goal was to know each other – with our qualities and flaws as well, to understand whateach member could bring into the team and how we could combine pleasure with hard work.The next step required a thorough study of the case and collective brainstorming. After we had aclue what the case was about, we started the frantic search for useful materials. Then came thoselong sleepless nights, so familiar to any experienced mooter, when we had to somehowsummarize, synthesize and harmonize thousands of pages of legal documents, judgments and“the teachings of the most highly qualified publicists” and come up with 25 pages of writtenarguments.The national round was a corner stone for us – the session of exams was barely over when wehad to start rehearsing our pleadings. However, we were resolved to jump this hurdle in order tocontinue the race. Our efforts paid off and just one month before the final round we could finallybook our tickets for The Hague. Pleading at the Peace Palace was an amazing experience and thegreat memories connected with this place and with the people we met there – participants,judges, organizers – will haunt us for many years from now on. But in the end, what we findmost important is that we will always look back in joy at the never-ending meetings at theUniversity, when, behind closed doors, we played at turns the role of an agent in front of theInternational Court of Justice. We will also smile nostalgically at our little clashes regarding thenature of straddling fish or the role of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf,while we will have a good laugh at our heated debates on the pronunciation of “AbundatiaRidge”.For us, the road to Telders has represented all these together. The satisfaction of winning theEUROCONTROL Award was undeniably huge, but what we are most happy for is that the basisof this prize lies not only in hard work and ambition, but, overall, in friendship.37

Winner of the BEST JUDGE AWARDMarc SteinerFrom 16-18 April 2009, I had the great honour of participating as one of the (fictive) Judges ofthe semi-finals of the 32 nd Telders International Law Moot Court Competition, (for once not)taking place in the Peace Palace in The Hague. It was my eighth year of judging in theCompetition, so I’m comparatively a novice (also showing in terms of age).Remarkable about Telders (also compared to some other Moot Courts) is – despite the necessaryurge to win – the spirit of common enrichment and not of rude competition in a way well-knownby young associates in law firms. This might be partly due to the fact that public international lawspecially attracts old-fashioned or should I say avantgarde idealists, what entails a particular vibe.The wonderful results are long lasting friendships, lots of fun and a lively atmosphere.The 2009 Competition involved teams from 25 universities in 24 European countries, each ofthem arguing in their oral pleadings about the legal position in a complex and interesting fictionaldispute, this year regarding the case "concerning sovereignty over Abundantia Ridge and othermatters", opposing the States of Rosmarus and Urusus. To me this case was certainly asparticular as to the students since I'm not exactly – how could I as a Swiss? – a downrightmaritime law specialist and UNCLOS-fanatic. Fortunately some questions about theinterpretation of treaties arised, especially concerning the famous "Treaty of friendship" betweenRosmarus and Urusus, which gave me the feeling of save ground.Once more this years’ Competition proved first of all how fascinating meeting people from allover the world with various backgrounds can be, assuring stimulating discussions. Secondly, I getevery year again the feeling of contributing to the building of next generations’ Europe. I'm stilloverwhelmed the same way as I was ten years ago looking at the great effort universities from"Eastern" European Countries undertake to enable the participation of its team and howastonishing their performance is, especially this year!I'm convinced that the 32 nd Telders Law Moot Court Competition has once more providedpromising young layers with excellent training and experience that will – to quote professorSteven Freeland, winner of the best judge award 2008 – be essential for them to deal with theinevitable legal challenges of the 21 st century. I'm sure to speak for all of the fictive and realJudges in saying that it was a real pleasure to be involved in this Competition, and wishing all ofthe participating students every success in their career as well as in their private future. Let meclose with a warm thank to all very committed people in the Telders Organizing Office andeveryone else contributing to this wonderful event.38

Winner of the STUDENTS FOR STUDENTS AWARDThe Honorable Society of the Kings InnsThis was the first time which The Honorable Society of the Kings Inns entered this competition.We as a team, did not have international law experience and never mooted internationally before.We entered in trepidation, not knowing what to expect. It turned out to be a wonderfulexperience, from the moment the competition started on the Wednesday to the final on theSaturday.The competition was superbly organised. The organising team listened to all our naive querieswith patience and assisted us where they could. Whether this was in relation to the competitionitself or more importantly, where to enjoy ourselves.Furthermore, the competition afforded us the opportunity to meet with students fromuniversities all over Europe. Dining and socialising together, we exchanged ideas, experiences,thoughts on International law and of course email addresses. This greatly added to the spirit offriendship which the competition creates.Receiving this award from our fellow students was a great honour, one which we really cherish.All we can say is thank you to our fellow competitors and thank you to Telders for doing such asuperb job. We will sing the praises of this competition to anyone who will listen, probably notmany as no one likes to listen to a lawyer. Hopefully more Irish universities will enter the nationalrounds in future years.Thank you once again for a great experience and for giving us the opportunity of meeting somany other students.39

FINAL RESULTS 2009ApplicantCOUNTRYTOTALSCOREA (M+O)RANKINGA (M+O)Austria 282,5 1Ireland 267,5 2Switzerland 264 3Estonia 262,5 4NL-Leiden 260,5 5Greece 257,5 6England 256,75 7Germany 255 8Georgia 252,5 9Malta 252 10Ukraine 252 10France 252 10Bulgaria 251 13Serbia 248,5 14Romania 248 15Sweden 246,5 16Scotland 244,5 17Poland 242 18Slovakia 240,5 19NL-Utrecht 240,5 19Finland 237 21Portugal 236,5 22Belarus 234 23Hungary 233,5 24RussianFederation218 25RespondentCOUNTRYTOTALSCORE B(M+O)RANKINGB (M+O)Austria 278 1Serbia 270,5 2Romania 268 3Sweden 268 3Greece 263,5 5Ukraine 261,5 6NL-Leiden 261 7Malta 260,5 8Estonia 258,5 9Switzerland 253,5 10Hungary 253 11Germany 252,5 12NL-Utrecht 252 13Georgia 252 13England 248,5 15Ireland 243 16Finland 242,5 17Scotland 232,5 18Belarus 231 19Slovakia 230 20Russian Federation 229 21France 228 22Portugal 227 23Bulgaria 219 24Poland 209,5 2540

Overall Scores Applicant (A) & Respondent (B)COUNTRYTotal Score A(M+O)Total Score B(M+O)Total Overall Score A+B(M+O)OVERALLRANKINGAustria 282,5 278 560,5 1NL-Leiden 260,5 261 521,5 2Greece 257,5 263,5 521 3Estonia 262,5 258,5 521 3Serbia 248,5 270,5 519 5Switzerland 264 253,5 517,5 6Romania 248 268 516 7Sweden 246,5 268 514,5 8Ukraine 252 261,5 513,5 9Malta 252 260,5 512,5 10Ireland 267,5 243 510,5 11Germany 255 252,5 507,5 12England 256,75 248,5 505,25 13Georgia 252,5 252 504,5 14NL-Utrecht 240,5 252 492,5 15Hungary 233,5 253 486,5 16France 252 228 480 17Finland 237 242,5 479,5 18Scotland 244,5 232,5 477 19Slovakia 240,5 230 470,5 20Bulgaria 251 219 470 21Belarus 234 231 465 22Portugal 236,5 227 463,5 23Poland 242 209,5 451,5 24Russian Federation 218 229 447 2541

AWARDS AND PRIZES 2009Winning TeamUniversity of Novi SadFinalist TeamUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolThe Max Huber Award for best overall scoreUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolThe EUROCONTROL Award for Best Memorial for the ApplicantUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolThe EUROCONTROL Award for Best Memorial for the RespondentUniversity of BucharestThe Students for Students Awardawarded by the Telders Student Society for International LawThe Honorable Society of King's InnsThe Best Oralist AwardMr. Laurens Miserus, Utrecht UniversityThe Runner-up Best Oralist AwardMr. Aqeel Hasan Noorali, King’s College LondonBest Judge Award, awarded by the participating studentsMr. Marc Steiner, Judge, Federal Administrative Court, Switzerland42

The Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn Award for Best Oral Argumentationon behalf of the ApplicantUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolThe Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn Award for Best Oral Argumentationon behalf of the RespondentUniversity of Vienna Law SchoolLeiden Journal for International Law Award for Outstanding Team EffortBelarusian State University43

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThe 32 nd edition of the Telders International Law Moot Court Competition would not have beenpossible without the generous support and sponsorship of (in no particular order):EUROCONTROLPort of AmsterdamDutch Ministry of Foreign AffairsSwiss Embassy to the Netherlands, Direction du droit international public du DépartementFédéral des affaires étrangères Suisse, Développement fédéral du droit international, financial aidprogramme: « Support by the Swiss Confederation for voluntary actions to promote respect for internationallaw »City of The HagueCity of LeidenThe Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, Campus The Hague, Leiden UniversityThe Governing Board of Leiden UniversityPels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn Law FirmParkhotel Den HaagCarnegie FoundationFoundation ‘Dr Hendrik Muller's Vaderlandsch Fonds’Cornelis van Vollenhoven FoundationProf. Dra. Maria del Angel Iglesias (private donor)Brill Academic PublishersMartinus Nijhoff PublishersJongbloed Law BooksellersThomson ReutersT.M.C Asser PressLeiden Journal for International Law44