As part of the course ‘Telders International Law Moot Court Competition’, students are given the opportunity to gain insights into the practice of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague and to conduct a simulated hearing before the Court based on a fictional case.
Even before the official release of this year’s case, the 2025 Telders Team of the University of Graz (KFU) participated in a Pre-Moot Workshop held in Budapest from 21 to 24 October 2025. Together with the teams from Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf (HHU) and Eötvös-Loránd-University (ELTE), the participants had the chance to gain first-hand experience in the field of international dispute settlement.
During the workshop, students from the three universities worked in mixed groups on a fictional case, which they first analyzed and subsequently presented in a simulated hearing. The focus here was on developing convincing arguments and improving rhetorical skills in a courtroom setting.
After two intensive days of research, the oral hearings before a panel of judges took place. The panel was composed of Wiss.-Mit. Thimotheus Staab, Wiss.-Mit. Jasper Kurth, Hendrik Heidlindemann (all HHU), as well as Kálmán Márk Varga and Gábor Bazsó of ELTE and Mag. Natascha Gojkovic (KFU). Through targeted questions and constructive feedback, the participants gained valuable insights into the requirements of an oral pleading and were able to gather important experiences for the upcoming season.
In addition to the academic aspects, the Pre-Moot also provided an opportunity to meet students from other universities and to exchange ideas during a joint dinner.
The Department of International Law and International Relations of the University of Graz expresses its sincere gratitude to Eötvös-Loránd-University in Budapest for organizing and hosting the workshop, as well as to the participating coaches – Timotheus Staab (for the HHU team) and Kálmán Márk Varga and Gábor Bazsó (for the ELTE team) – for their dedicated support.
This year’s team of the University of Graz, consisting of Viktoria Schirnhofer, Jana Tsybrovskyy, Charlotte Vereecken, and Mechthild Wochesländer, is coached by Univ-Prof. Dr. Erika de Wet, LL.M. (Harvard) and Univ.-Ass. Mag. Natascha Gojkovic.