Students from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Ukraine, have been declared the winners of the 2026 Helga Pedersen Moot Court competition for law students after beating a rival team from Maastricht University Faculty of Law, Netherlands, in the final round.

This was the 14th edition of the Helga Pedersen Moot Court Competition, with the final round held in Strasbourg from 1-5 June 2026. The competition, consisting of mock legal proceedings conducted in English and based on a simulation of an individual application before the ECHR, was open to law students, and was organised jointly by the Council of Europe and the European Law Students’ Association (ELSA).

Eighteen university teams from 13 countries (Austria, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, the Slovak Republic, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom), selected following a written stage and regional rounds, competed to win a fictitious case related to criminal behaviour in cyberspace, artificial intelligence tools in the administration of justice, and the right to a fair trial.

• Press release
• More info (web site ECHR)
• More info (web site ELSA)