Leiden’s International Institute of Air and Space Law (IIASL) was delighted to co-organise the 15th edition of the Leiden-Sarin International Air Law Moot Court Competition alongside this year’s host, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in Mexico City. The event brought together around 200 students and professionals from six continents under the collaboration agreement between UNAM and Leiden University.

International Air Law Conference

Prior to the competition, the Leiden IIASL International Air Law Conference was held on 17 April, during which the legal aspects of topics such as aviation cybersecurity, airports and aviation disasters were discussed at length. The conference was opened with remarks by Professors Steven Truxal (Director, International Institute of Air and Space Law), Leonardo Lomelí Vanegas (Rector, UNAM), Sonia Venegas Álvarez (Dean of the Faculty of Law, UNAM) and Mr Christopher Barks (Regional Director, North American, Central American and Caribbean Regional Office of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)). The conference took place at UNAM’s Antigua Escuela de Jurisprudencia in Mexico City's historic centre.

International Air Law Moot Court Competition

A total of 17 teams from all around the world travelled to Mexico City to participate in the competition.

Following two days of semi-finals, Leiden University (applicant) faced The Chinese University of Hong Kong (respondent) in the final. The final took place on 20 April at UNAM’s Faculty of Law and was judged by Michael Gill (Director, Legal Affairs & External Relations, ICAO), Carlos Sierra (Managing Partner, Abogados Sierra and Professor, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM)) and Nuhad Ponce Kuri (President, Asociación Nacional de Abogados de Empresa). After lengthy deliberations, the bench returned to announce the winner: The Chinese University of Hong Kong! Many congratulations to the winning team!

• Best memorial applicant: National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy
• Best memorial respondent: The Chinese University of Hong Kong
• Best oral arguments applicant: Leiden University
• ​​​​​​​Best oral arguments respondent: The Chinese University of Hong Kong
• ​​​​​​​Best oralist: Liubomir Bahah (National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy)

The International Institute of Air and Space Law was delighted to host the 14th edition of the Leiden-Sarin International Air Law Moot Court Competition – for the first time – in Leiden! After three years of online mooting owing to the pandemic, this year’s competition was held again in person.

Enjoy the trip down memory lane with this video!

This year’s case concerned the use of weapons against civil aircraft, aviation cybersecurity and dual registration of civil aircraft. Prior to the competition, IIASL was delighted to host the International Air Law Conference on Aviation Cybersecurity.

Sixteen teams qualified and ultimately 14 teams travelled to Leiden from around the world to participate in the semi-finals of the competition, which was opened in the Groot Auditorium by Minister Mark Harbers (Infrastructure and Water Management) and Alderman Fleur Spijker (Alderman of the City of Leiden). Over two days, teams delivered four rounds of oral pleadings in the Old Observatory. The finals took place on the 14 May in the Lorentzzaal, between University of Cologne as the applicant and McGill University as the respondent. The final rounds were judged by a distinguished bench: Marc Nichols (Chief Counsel of the US Federal Aviation Administration), Jeffrey Shane (former General Counsel for the International Air Transport Association) and Dr Gérardine Goh Escolar (Deputy Secretary General, Hague Conference on Private Law). After the deliberation of the judges, the team representing McGill University was declared the winner of the competition. Many congratulations to both teams!

Best memorial applicant: University of Cologne

Best memorial respondent: McGill University

Best oral arguments applicant: University of Cologne and McGill University (tie)

Best oral arguments respondent: Leiden University

The 10th International Air Law Moot Court and the celebration of its anniversary took place in Chandigarh, India, from 5-7 April 2019. The International Institute of Air and Space Law wishes to thank th co-founder of the Competition, the Sarin Memorial Legal Aid Foundation from India, for hosting this rememeberable celebration.

The 10th edition welcomed 18 teams from 11 countries: Singapore (2), Leiden, Germany, France, India (4), China (2), Russia (2), Poland (2), Canada, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka.

The Ninth International Air Law Moot Court Competition took place from 12-15 April 2018 in Seoul, South-Korea. The founders of the competition, the International Institute of Air and Space Law at Leiden University and the Sarin Legal Aid Foundation from India want to express our gratitude to Incheon International Airport Corporation for hosting this years’ competitions.

This edition welcomed 21 teams from 15 countries. The following countries participated in the moot court in 2018: Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Netherlands, Poland (2), Russia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Ukraine (2), United Arab Emirates, China (3) and India (3).