For the second year running, ELSA Malta has successfully hosted the Mata Summer ELSA Law School on Maritime Law. The Summer Law School officially took place from the 21st till the 26th of August 2016. Through this initiative, European students are given the opportunity to submit an application, which sometimes requires an assignment on the topic to be tackled at the specific summer law school and are then chosen from a number of applicants to attend.
Once again, ELSA Malta received a huge amount of applications from which 50 participants of different nationalities were chosen. Once again, the Summer Law school was centered over the legal area of Maritime law. Over the years, the Maltese Islands’ have established themselves as a major maritime hub due to their strategic position as well as other contributing factors. The Maltese initiative at the 1967 UN General Assembly that resulted in the adoption of the 1982 United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea and the local establishment of the International Maritime Law Institute under the auspices of the United Nation’s International Maritime Organisation are the pinnacle of this success.
The Participants benefitted from several engaging lectures delivered by some of the best practitioners in the field. Apart from the academic programme, students also benefitted from a great social programme including cultural visits to Gozo, Valletta, Mdina and the Three cities, a visit to Malta’s Freeport, beach visits and last but not least they got to experience Malta’s amazing nightlife in Paceville.
Professor Dr Norman Martinez from IMLI (International Maritime Law Institute) presented our participants with certificates of participation to officially close the Summer ELSA Law School.
ELSA Malta would like to thank its sponsors, the University of Malta (UOM), the International Maritime Law Institute (IMLI), the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), and last but not least Gauci-Maistre Xynou’s team of professionals who were the main sponsors for the SELS. We also extend our gratitude to Fenech & Fenech, Ganado Advocates and Dingli & Dingli Law Firm for aiding us with our academic programme. Such an event would not have been possibile without all of their support.