18th Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition
The Eighteenth Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition adopts a hybrid format, with the in-person final rounds scheduled to take place at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland from 13 – 17 July 2026 and the preliminary virtual rounds (online) scheduled to take place from 11 – 16 May 2026.
About the Competition
The World Moot is open to undergraduate and masters students from all universities in the world. Teams of two students (gender diversity is encouraged) from every university in the world are invited to submit heads of argument for a hypothetical human rights case. The best 10 teams from each of the five UN region are then invited to participate in the online preliminary rounds. The 50 teams (with the highest memorial grades) have to argue the two sides of the hypothetical case, representing, alternatively, both the Applicant and the Respondent before a ‘bench’ of human rights experts and judges of international tribunals.
The 24 best teams proceed to the advanced in person rounds, which are presided over by international human rights experts. The Competition is presented in English, French and in Spanish.
As part of the Competition, an Annual Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture is held.
Additional Information
For more details, visit the Frequently Asked Questions page
For more information, please contact the Nelson Mandela World Moot Court Competition Coordinator
Dr Eduardo Kapapelo
eduardo.kapapelo@up.ac.za .
Organised by
- Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria
- Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, American University, Washington College of Law
- The Commonwealth Secretariat, and
- United Nations Human Rights Council Branch (HRCB) at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
With the financial support of
- European Union through the Global Campus of Human Rights
- Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations Office and to the other international organisations in Geneva
- South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office in Geneva and
- The Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA) of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
