The International Institute of Space Law (IISL) introduced the Africa introductory round of the Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition in 2011, which was held in Cape Town, South Africa. In 2012, the 1st Africa Regional Round was hosted in Pretoria, South Africa, by the Aerospace Industry Support Initiative (AISI), an initiative of the South African Department of Trade and Industry managed by the CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research). Four participating universities representing South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria, sent teams to the 1st Africa Regional Round.

The competition is a simulated hearing in the area of space law and is organised annually by the IISL. The participating regions consist of Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and Africa (added in 2012).

This competition encourages further development on the subject matter of space law in the curriculum of academic institutions and assists participating countries in developing the technical legal capacity by preparing the next generation of space lawyers. The competition provides a platform for the students, where the analysis, drafting, presentation and arguing skills of an upcoming lawyer are put to test.

The winner of the regional round will represent the Africa region at the World Finals, to be held in conjunction with the International Astronautical Congress.

Registration details, including the registration form for the Africa Regional Round, can be downloaded here.

Visit the Lachs resources page to access many useful documents, links to other sites, videos of World Finals, examples of two memorials, guide to prepare memorials & oral arguments and much more: http://www.iislweb.org/lachsmoot/resources.html

The location and dates of the upcoming regional round can be found in this file.

Adv. (Ms) Lulu Makapela
[email protected]