VdA and VdA Academia supported the FDUL team in their participation in the 32nd Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, the largest moot court competition focused on international commercial arbitration. This prestigious competition addresses contemporary issues in international arbitration and applies the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

From 11 to 17 April, the team took part in the final phase of the competition in Vienna, alongside 380 teams from across the globe.

In preparation for this stage, the team competed in the Warsaw Pre-Moot, the Lisbon Pre-Moot, and the Madrid Pre-Moot, emerging as winners of the latter.

This year’s team consisted of five final-year bachelor’s degree students from FDUL: Francisco Bagorro, Laura Bento, Gustavo Horta, Renata Santos, and Sofia Figueiredo. The team was coordinated by Professor José Ferreira Gomes, with coaching support provided by Gonçalo Pacheco Vilela and Ricardo Ramos Lourenço from VdA, alongside António Pestana Araújo and Diogo Madeira Canário.

This year's case involved a dispute over the contested termination of a turnkey green hydrogen plant project. The teams were tasked with addressing issues related to multi-tiered dispute resolution clauses, the admissibility of evidence in arbitration, and the scope of the CISG’s application.

• For further information access here.