University of Nicosia Team Participated in the Oral Rounds of the PAX Moot Court Competition 2026 in Sofia

The University of Nicosia is pleased to announce the successful participation of its team in the oral rounds of the PAX Moot Court Competition 2026 (Vladimir Kutikov Round), held on15-17 April 2026 at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” in Bulgaria.

The PAX Moot is a leading international moot court competition dedicated exclusively to Private International Law, bringing together law students from across jurisdictions to argue complex cross-border disputes involving jurisdiction, choice of law, and the recognition and enforcement of judgments.

The University of Nicosia team was successfully selected for the oral rounds following a highly competitive written phase. Representatives of the University included Vasilis Evangeliou, Olga Charalampous, and Dionysis Tsikaderis, assisted by Eva Manolova and Nicoletta Zacharopoulos, under the coaching of Dr. Nicolas Kyriakides. During the oral rounds, the team competed against leading universities, including the University of Münster (Germany), Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” (Bulgaria), ESADE Law School of Ramon Llull University (Spain), and the University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy). The rounds provided an opportunity to engage in high-level legal argumentation and to develop advanced advocacy skills in a demanding international environment.

The PAX Moot 2026 concluded with outstanding performances across all participating teams. The University of Ljubljana was awarded first place, with Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” finishing as runner-up. The award for Best Written Submission (shared first place) was presented to the University of Warsaw and the University of Ljubljana, while honourable mentions were awarded to Singapore Management University, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and the University of Antwerp.

In the individual awards, Chloe Xin Ying Chia (Singapore Management University) was named Best Oralist, followed by Lara Vangoethem (Maastricht University) in second place and Benedetta Gargiulo (Maastricht University) in third place.

The University of Nicosia expresses its sincere appreciation to the Cyprus Bar Association, L Papaphilippou & Co LLC, Christos Georgiades & Associates LLC, Emilianides Katsaros LLC, and Harris Kyriakides for their generous financial support, which made the team’s participation possible.

The University is particularly proud of the team’s dedication, professionalism, and commitment throughout the months of preparation leading up to the oral rounds. Their participation in this prestigious competition reflects the strength of advocacy training and the growing prominence of Private International Law within the University’s academic programme. Looking ahead, the University of Nicosia team is already inspired to build on this experience and looks forward to participating in future editions of the PAX Moot, including the next round to be held in Barcelona, continuing its commitment to excellence in international legal advocacy.