Moot Courts
A moot court is a simulated court hearing conducted as part of legal education. In fictional trials, students are expected to represent one of the parties involved in a hypothetical or real lawsuit. In these trials, the jury consists of renowned legal scholars who examine and critically evaluate the quality of the pleadings and oral arguments presented. This gives students the opportunity to apply their theoretical knowledge in a realistic way and to compete with other teams in the practical application of the law. At the Turkish-German University, the Prof. Dr. Philip Kunig Moot Court on Constitutional Jurisdiction was established in 2022. In addition, participation in both national and international moot courts is open. Students at TGU's Law Faculty have successfully participated in these competitions in the past.
1. Law Faculty Moot Court at Turkish-German University
Prof. Dr. Philip Kunig Moot Court
The Prof. Dr. Philip Kunig Moot Court was announced for the first time in 2022 and was established by the Departments of General Public Law and Constitutional Law. It is named after Prof. Dr. Dres. h.c. Philip Kunig, a renowned German academician and expert in the fields of constitutional, administrative, and international law, to honor his outstanding achievements in establishing and promoting the Law Faculty. The competition aims to strengthen our students’ knowledge in the field of constitutional and human rights law by applying their theoretical knowledge, improving their practical skills, and providing experience in petition writing.
2. National Moot Courts
a) Bahçeşehir University Constitutional Complaint Moot Court (BAU VaBB)
Bahçeşehir University’s Constitutional Complaint Moot Court (BAU VaBB) is organized every year as a competition among Turkish universities. In this way, law students are encouraged to increase their knowledge of human rights law and to practice filing a fictional constitutional complaint with the Constitutional Court. Students of the German-Turkish University regularly participate in this competition and won first place in 2019 and second place in 2022.
b) ELSA Istanbul Prof. Dr. Rona Serozan Moot Court
ELSA Istanbul Prof. Dr. Rona Serozan Moot Court allows teams of law students from all over Turkey to debate on a specific case and defend their arguments in front of a jury. The competition was named after the famous Turkish academician Prof. Dr. Rona Serozan who was interested in all areas of civil law and is especially known for his work on inter vivos dispositions by will. Our students ranked first among 41 teams in the third ELSA Istanbul Prof. Dr. Rona Serozan Moot Court in 2018 and continued their success in the fourth edition of this moot court in 2019.
3. International Moot Courts
a) Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court
The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court is the world's best-known and most-attended moot court, with participants from nearly 100 countries and 700 universities. The competition is named after Philip C. Jessup, an American lawyer and former judge of the International Court of Justice in The Hague. The competition is held in English as a simulated public international law case with the International Court of Justice. The competition is hosted by the International Law Students Association (ILSA), headquartered in Washington, D.C. In 2022, a team of law students represented our university in the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court.
b) Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot
The Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot (Vis Moot) is an international moot court. It is named after Willem Cornelis Vis, a recognized expert in international commercial dispute and arbitration. In the Vis Moot fictional arbitration disputes are conducted. It is the most prestigious and largest competition regarding the CISG and international arbitration. A team of law students represented our university in the 29th Willem C. Vis International Arbitration Moot Court.
4. Jean-Pictet Competition
The Jean-Pictet Competition deals with issues of international humanitarian law. Contrary to the usual Moot Court concepts, the participants take on an interactive role in this competition, since its objective is to “take the law out of the books”. The competition is named after Jean Simon Pictet, a Swiss lawyer and expert in international humanitarian law. Our students represented our university in the 34th Jean Pictet Competition held in Denpasar, Indonesia in 2020. Our team, which was entitled to participate in the competition during the written evaluation phase, took part in eight different tasks and scenarios, where they were tested not only on their knowledge of international humanitarian law, but also on their negotiation, role-playing and teamwork skills.
