The School of Law of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and the Athens Public International Law Center (Athens PIL) is very proud to announce the outstanding achievement of its undergraduate student team at the international rounds of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, held in Washington, D.C., United States of America, from 28 March to 4 April 2026.
With a history spanning 67 years, the Competition constitutes the oldest, largest, and most prestigious international moot court competition in the field of Public International Law, attracting hundreds of universities from across the globe. The Law School of NKUA has consistently participated with notable success, recording significant distinctions over time.
This year’s distinction commenced at the national stage of the Competition, where the team was awarded the title of National Champion, thereby securing its qualification to the international rounds. The team subsequently represented the University with distinction on the global stage, ranking among the 173 universities that advanced to the international rounds.
Following a week of particularly demanding and high-level oral pleadings, the team achieved 6th place globally for its performance in the written component of the competition and was awarded the Alona M. Evans Award, in recognition of the exceptionally high scores awarded to its submitted written memorials, outperforming leading international universities, including distinguished English-speaking institutions such as Harvard University and the University of Oxford. This achievement constitutes one of the highest rankings ever attained by the Law School of Athens in this Competition and ranks among the most significant Greek distinctions within the institution.
The team comprised the students Victoria Arvanitaki, Thrasivoulos-Christos (Akis) Kosmidis, Afroditi Charitonidou, Georgios Papaioannou, and Filaretos Loukoutos, who demonstrated exceptional dedication, academic excellence, and scholarly rigor throughout both their preparation and participation.
The team’s preparation, for both the national and international stages, was conducted under the academic supervision of Professor of International Law Maria Gavouneli and Assistant Professor of International Law Efthymios Papastavridis, with the contribution of Efpraxia Anagnostopoulou (former competitor and postgraduate student in Public International and European Law and Trainee Lawyer), Maria Anthi (former competitor and final-year law student at the Athens Law School), and Styliani Manolitsi (former competitor and Trainee Lawyer).
During the Competition, the team competed against leading universities worldwide, engaging with complex and contemporary issues of Public International Law. Among the Judges were distinguished legal practitioners, and renowned scholars.
This distinction constitutes a milestone for the Law School of NKUA, reaffirming the high standard of education provided and the academic caliber of its students in the field of Public International Law.
The School of Law of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and the Athens Public International Law Center (Athens PIL) convey its sincere gratitude to the Rector of NKUA, Professor Gerasimos Siasos, the University’s Governing Council, as well as the law firms “Calavros Law Firm – Filios – Kloukinas”, “Apostolos Georgiades & Associates”, “Bernitsas Law Firm”, “Zepos & Yannopoulos”, and “Potamitis Vekris Law Firm” for the generous sponsorship covering the team’s participation expenses.
Warm congratulations are extended to our students on this remarkable international distinction.
