Against the backdrop of cases of human rights violations, issues related to the independence of the judiciary, corruption and lack of freedom of expression in Bulgaria, reported by the US State Department, several Bulgarian law students give hope that the young generation can overcome such problems. Students Yoana Valova, Ivan Ivanov, Sofia Lefterova and Diana Zasheva of the Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" have won the biggest law contest in the world in a competition with students of prestigious universities from 85 countries.

The Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot is a competition for law students focusing on the study and practice of international commercial law and international commercial arbitration. Every year nearly 350 teams with 2,500 students from all over the world take part in it. For the first time in the competition’s 29-year-long history, Bulgarian future lawyers managed to achieve the best ranking, while Ivan Ivanov ranked among the best speakers in the competition, often dubbed “the Olympic Games of International Commercial Arbitration”.

"The significance of the award is the recognition that we are the best and most prepared team in the world," says Lia Harizanova, who is coach of the team together with Anastas Punev and Oleg Temnikov. “The quality of the scientific arguments that are required in order to do well in this competition is extremely high. Ten months of hard work stand behind the success of the students, so it's a great reward for their efforts," the young lawyer says.

One of the problems students had to solve was related to the inclusion of arbitration clauses in the general terms and conditions that affect many people who confirm them by clicking "I agree" on their laptops or phones. Another problem concerned an existing contract for the sale of palm oil.

"The case was huge - 70 pages of facts and documents that we worked on from late September to early April,” Lia Harizanova says. “The teams had to write first a written defense for the plaintiff, then for the defendant and finally to prepare an oral defense for both positions. Every year the cases are extremely adequate to the modern reality - they deal with practical problems of law and are inspired by real cases. It is no coincidence that the founders of Willem C. Vis Moot are one of the most prominent practicing lawyers in the field of international arbitration and international commercial law. These

competitions are a wonderful opportunity for experience in things that do not seem to be a priority in Bulgarian education.”

Can the success of this team be representative of the level of training in the sphere of law in Bulgaria?

"There are talented and bright young people in all Bulgarian universities," Lia Harizanova says. “On international level we have shown the potential to be as good as other countries. I think there is a need for more practical exercises. "

Having followed the path of a brilliant student with several awards from competitions, Lia Harizanova says that achievements open doors in various ways. One of them is feeding the desire of young people to become good lawyers and to gain knowledge in spheres of law that would not otherwise be taught at the university. "If you want to do something like this, you are already many steps ahead of others who have never had the opportunity to work on such issues," Lia Harizanova says. And having already realized her dream of a Bulgarian team reaching the finals of the competition, she is now looking forward to fulfill her next idea - creating a community to support students and subsequently help them in their professional development.

English: Alexander Markov