Our students take part in the National 24-hour Health Law Competition

On 7 May, students from the Master’s programme in Health Law and Medical Liability of the Faculty of Law of the Université Catholique de Lille took part in the National 24-hour Health Law Competition (Concours National des 24h du Droit de la Santé). This year’s event was hosted by Université de Picardie Jules Verne in Amiens and has been organised for the past twenty years by the Health Law School of Université de Montpellier, led by Professor François Vialla.

This well-known competition brings together 12 teams from 9 French and French-speaking international universities around one challenge: defending a complex health law case in just 24 hours. It is an intense experience that introduces students to the realities of legal advocacy and litigation, while testing their analytical, writing and public speaking skills.

The format is both demanding and rewarding. When they arrive, the teams discover a completely new case file and are randomly assigned the role of claimant or defendant in this mock trial. After working through the night on their written submissions, the students exchange arguments with the opposing side before preparing their oral pleadings, which are presented the following day before a jury.

Four awards recognise the excellence of the participants: best advocate, best oral pleading, best written submission and best team.

For the past twenty years, Lina Williatte has supported the students of her master’s programme throughout this academic and human adventure. Over the years, our faculty has excelled on several occasions in this prestigious competition, which it also hosted a few years ago.

Beyond the competition itself, the 24-hour Health Law Competition is above all a unifying and enriching experience. It gives health law students the opportunity to exchange ideas, build lasting connections and develop a strong professional network. Lecturers and programme directors also take part in these discussions, helping to strengthen an engaged academic community dedicated to health law.

An intense, rewarding and collective experience that perfectly reflects the commitment and dynamism of our students.