FAQ

An award-winning filmmaker has expressed interest in filming the Nuremberg Moot Court 2026 for a documentary film. It is not certain yet that the film will be made, but applicants to the Nuremberg Moot Court 2026 should be aware of the possibility. 

If the film is made, the filming during the oral rounds in Nuremberg will cover all aspects of the whole moot court, i.e. all pleadings, all events etc. By applying to the Nuremberg Moot Court, the teams consent to being filmed for the documentary during the oral rounds in Nuremberg.

This may include filming during the written phase in the teams’ home countries. During the oral rounds in Nuremberg this may include everyday activities such as preparing in the hostel for the competition, going out in the city, or similar situations.

Teams must explicitly agree to potentially be contacted and accompanied by the filmmakers. Consent only means that we may forward the coordinator’s email address to the film crew — not that the team will definitely be contacted or that filming during the written phase will take place.

The registration form now includes a field where teams may confirm or reject that their email address can be passed on to the filmmakers.

Yes, the Nuremberg Moot Court will take place from 22 - 25 July 2026 and will be held in Nuremberg, Germany with the final round taking place at the historic Courtroom 600 of the Nuremberg Palace of Justice. 

Further instructions and information regarding the organisation of the hearings will be shared with the teams, via our Facebook page and on our website, at least two weeks before the competition.

The Nuremberg Moot Court is an international competition held in English in Nuremberg, Germany. Teams from all over the world are invited to argue a fictitious case before the "International Criminal Court". A moot court is a simulated court proceeding which invites law students to compete and present written and oral arguments for both the prosecution and the defence. 

Students are given the unique opportunity to develop their skills and plead at the historic Courtroom 600 of the Nuremberg Palace of Justice, where the Nuremberg trials against the major Nazi war criminals took place.

The organisers of the Nuremberg Moot Court are the International Nuremberg Principles Academy and the International Criminal Law Research Unit at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg.

The Nuremberg Moot Court usually takes place every year in July. The oral rounds of the Nuremberg Moot Court 2025 will take place from 23 July 2025 to 26 July 2025.

Your team coordinator must complete an application through our online application system, available from 1 December 2025. You will be asked to provide the following information:

• The name of the institution represented by your team;
• Personal information about your team coordinator, team coach, and all team members;
• A motivation.

Yes. Our online form only lists countries with ISO codes. If your country has not been assigned a code, such as Kosovo, please contact us directly via registration@~@nuremberg-moot-court.de.

No, the deadline to apply to the Nuremberg Moot Court cannot be extended, as it will affect the organisation of the competition. Interested students are invited to apply on time. No exception will be granted.

Teams shall explain why they are applying to the Nuremberg Moot Court and why they are interested in international criminal law. Teams should also detail the relevance of the Nuremberg Moot Court to their studies and career plan.

Please limit your application letter to the indicated format. Applications with motivation letters of less than 750 or more than 1,300 words will be automatically rejected.

The motivation letter shall reflect the motivation of the team as a whole and not that of one individual member. The individual motivation of each team member can be included if they differ from each other.

Admission to the Nuremberg Moot Court is competitive. A selection committee carefully reviews all applications. The committee strives to select the most motivated teams based on the motivation letter and equitable geographic representation.

For the 2026 competition, selected teams will receive an email, via their team coordinator, on 2 February 2026.

For the 2026 competition, decisions regarding your funding application will be announced via email to your team coordinator on 18 May 2026.

Team members shall be undergraduate or graduate law students registered with an academic institution.

Team members need to be registered students at the time of application and throughout the entire competition (until July 2026). Individuals not registered with an academic institution are not eligible to compete in the Nuremberg Moot Court.

Teams participating in the Nuremberg Moot Court shall have a minimum of three and a maximum of five members (excluding the team coach). The details of each team member shall be provided at the application stage.

The substitution of team members is only permitted in limited circumstances once the application has been submitted. The organisers may grant exceptions. Please see below “Changes in the Team Composition”.

One university can send only one team to the competition. Ideally, we would expect teams from the same university to reach an agreement before applying to the Nuremberg Moot Court. If we receive more than one application from a university, we will assess the applications based on the motivation letter and choose the most motivated team.

If a university has several campuses, they are all considered as part of that university. The organisers will not accept applications from two campuses of the same university.

Yes. In exceptional cases, such as universities with limited capacities and resources or working together as part of an educational program, joint applications could be eligible. Please contact the organisers for further information.

Yes. Team members can choose to participate several years in a row, we do not have any limitations. We however encourage teams to change their members to allow other students to benefit from the experience.

A team coach provides general advice to the team members and assists with designing the case strategy but does not participate in the competition itself. S/he can be a staff member of the team’s institution. As far as there is an agreement between the students and the potential coach, there are no restrictions regarding the selection of a coach.

The team coordinator can be also a team coach or a team member. S/he is responsible for the administration of the whole team, such as application, accommodation, visa issues and communication with the organisers.

No. The Nuremberg Moot Court is free of charge. Team members are not required to pay any fees.

Yes, the organisers provide funding to three teams from conflict or post-conflict countries for in-person events. The funding covers travel expenses, accommodation and per diem for three team members and one team coach.

Apply for funding via your team’s account as part of the initial application to the Nuremberg Moot Court. Funding applications will be due at the same time as the initial application (19 January 2026).

The funding application should include a description of how the team meets the requirements in the below question. That is, it should explain why the country that the team is from qualifies as a conflict or post-conflict country.

Funding applications are evaluated based on the following criteria:

• The team is from a conflict or post-conflict country;
• Motivation; and
• Geographical representation.

Conflict or post-conflict countries shall be understood as countries experiencing or which have experienced serious violations of human rights and/or international humanitarian law. The organisers will assess this criterion based on the information provided in the motivation letter and publicly available information.

If a team has no coach, the funding will be given to four team members.

In general, the substitution of team members during the written phase is not permitted after 19 January 2026. The substitution of team members is possible for the oral phase until 18 May 2026. The organisers may grant exceptions in some limited instances.

If a team member drops out, but your team still has three or more members, your team will still be able to compete. Please inform the organisers and update your online account.

If your team has less than three members as a result of the drop-out, the organisers may grant an exception in some instances and allow the substitution of the team member. Please contact the organisers explaining the circumstances and providing the name of the new proposed team member.

Yes, you will receive a confirmation email. You can also check if the memoranda have been uploaded on your online account.

Written memoranda are evaluated based on the following criteria:

Handling of substantive issues:

• Knowledge and analysis of the facts
• Understanding of legal issues and the applicable law
• Legal analysis: quality of arguments
• Logic: structure of arguments

Overall presentation:

• Grammar
• Clear and concise writing style
• Use of legal terminology

Each memorandum is evaluated by two graders.

Yes. You need to book your own flight and accommodation, conclude a travel health insurance and organise your transportation (except for the three teams receiving funding who will receive assistance of the organisers).

The organisers will prepare a letter of invitation for team members who need a visa to attend the Nuremberg Moot Court.

Yes. Hearings are open to the public. Any interested person can watch the oral rounds of the Nuremberg Moot Court, depending on the seating capacity of the courtrooms.

The Nuremberg Moot Court will not assist individuals who are not part of a team with visas or any other logistical or administrative matters.

Team members shall bring all the necessary material for their pleading (printed pleadings, case material, notes, etc.).

The organisers will provide a welcome package comprising pens, notepads and a compilation of the core ICC documents (Rome Statute, Rules of Procedure and Evidence, etc.), as well as the Nuremberg Principles.

The team member presenting the argument will stand during her/his presentation. The other team members will sit.