After certain amendments and motions were approved, the new National Board for ELSA Malta for the year 2021-2022 was elected through votes cast by ELSA members.

The fresh faces of ELSA Malta are as follows:

• President: Raoul Ciappara
• Secretary General: John Paul Buttigieg
• Treasurer: Maria Scicluna
• Vice President for Marketing: Katrina Cini
• Vice President for Academic Activities: Emma De Gabriele
• Vice President for Moot Court Competitions: Sarah Xuereb
• Vice President for Seminars and Conferences: Luke Bonanno
• Vice President for Professional Development: Michela Galea

The new National Board of Directors was also approved:

• Director of International Focus Programme and Human Rights: Luca Camilleri
• Director for Academic Affairs: Michele Refalo
• Director for Seminars and Conferences: Bettina Cauchi
• Director for Public Relations: Amy Saliba
• Director for Legal Publications: Filippa Buontempo
• Director for Social Policy: Elisa Micallef Peplow
• Director for Internal Management: Jake Mallia

Following the National Council Meeting, The Third Eye got in touch with Raoul Ciappara, former Director for Legal Publications, to share his thoughts as the newly elected President for the upcoming term.

ELSA has given me a lot, both on an academic level through the office I have occupied this year and also socially by getting to know people that had it not been for ELSA I would probably never have met, locally and internationally. Thus, I only hope to repay what ELSA has done for me. But in my term as President, along with my newly elected team, we will strive to make this happen. By making sure that the students always come first, as I have felt in the past, that someone or something is there to be a voice for someone who may feel as just a number from the numerous students that enter the law course each year. To make them feel like someone has their best interests in mind.

Raoul Ciappara, Current ELSA President

The Third Eye also got in touch with former President, James Caruana;

While I thank the outgoing board for all their hard work and dedication, I am confident that under Raoul’s guidance, the newly elected ELSA Malta Executive Board will ensure that all law students get the representation they deserve for yet another year.

James Caruana former ELSA President

The Third Eye would like to congratulate the new Executive Board and National Board of Directors on their positions. We wish them the best of luck for the upcoming year!

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After seeking direction from the Registrar, Dr. Mifsud, Dean of the Faculty of Laws, has informed law student organisations on Monday, that study unit coordinators will start uploading past papers for free through VLE. This arrangement was brought forward after some questions were raised by fourth-year law students, arguing that this material should be provided for free. 

European Law Student Association (ELSA) released a statement on Monday declaring its position on this matter stating that they “strongly believe that students should not have to pay for past papers”.

Other Faculties within The University of Malta have been offering past papers to their students free of charge for a number of years, and we believe that law students are completely entitled to the same commodities and services.⁣

ELSA Malta

On Monday through an Instagram account, ‘lawsofmalta’, reacted positively to this arrangement. 

In their statement shared through Facebook, ELSA Malta explained that according to the communication received from the Faculty of Laws, past papers will be shared ‘starting from 2017, as long as the study unit coordinator agrees with such past papers being disseminated.’ 

In light of this decision, the organisation took matters into their own hands stating that ‘the problem has only been partially solved as it is still unclear whether past papers preceding 2017 can or cannot be sold’. ELSA invited students to send past examination papers dating back before 2017 through email, which will be compiled and then shared with students who will access them for free. 

Għaqda Studenti Tal-Liġi (GħSL) the student organisation in question, who previously took care of selling  past papers to students also released a statement on Tuesday, clarifying its position and explaining that; ‘the reason behind the purchase of past papers stemmed from a normative agreement which started as a collaboration between the Organization near its genesis and the Faculty.’ 

The organisation thanked ‘all those who have brought this issue to light, and who have pushed GħSL to collaborate with Faculty on a new agreement which is more suitable and reflective of students’ needs’. 

It is for this reason that the Organization would like to announce that it has heard the students’ wishes, and hence strongly agrees that past papers prior to 2017, which will not be under the care of Faculty as recently agreed, are to be distributed for free.

GħSL

Both GħSL and ELSA are on par with the fact that past papers prior to 2017, are to be distributed for free by the Faculty of Laws. 

This is an update to our prior article.

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