In second place was Team Germany, represented by Mr. Nils Imgarten, Ms. Sara Evelyn Schmidt and Mr. Arne Gutsche along with team tutor Ms. Valerie Datzer.

In third place was Team Romania, represented by Ms. Anca Nistoroiu, Mr. Adi Razvan Marian, and Ms. Roxana Sintimbrean along with team tutor Ms. Amelia Onisor

Eight teams representing Bulgaria, Czechia, France, Germany, Portugal, Romania and two Serbian teams participated in the Grand Final. The teams prepared excellent written reports and delivered outstanding presentations and the Q&A sessions with each other and the members of the Jury.

The Awards Ceremony was held in the Portuguese Constitutional Court with the warm welcome speeches from Mr. João Pedro Caupers, President of the Constitutional Court of Portugal, Mr. Markus Brückner, EJTN Secretary General, Ms. Sofia Moreira de Sousa, Head of European Commission’s Representation in Portugal and Mr. João Manuel da Silva Miguel, Director of the Centre for Judicial Studies. The auditorium had the chance to watch the message from Mr. Didier Reynders, Commissioner for Justice.

Mr. Caupers was awarded the first prize while Mr. Miguel, and Ms. Sousa, awarded the second and the third. Mr. Brückner, EJTN Secretary General awarded the THEMIS cup to the winning team together with the award of the one-week study visit of their choice in 2022.

Debate and discussion
This year’s THEMIS Competition began with the time-limited exercise of writing a legal paper-based topic dealing with human rights and access to justice.

EJTN warmly thanks the hard-working jury members who assessed the participants’ written papers, presided over the debates and deliberated each team’s performance. The Grand Final has been co-chaired by Ms. Françoise Tulkens, former Vice-President and judge elected in respect of Belgium to the European Court of Human Rights. and Mr. Grzegorz Borkowski, judge, international legal expert, former Head of Office of the National Council of the Judiciary of Poland. Other members of the Jury were Ms. Edith Zeller, Judge at the Administrative Court of Vienna and President of the Association of European Administrative Judges (AEAJ); and, Mr. Juan Hernández Villalba, Senior Prosecutor, International Cooperation Unit in the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Madrid

EJTN further thanks to the Director of the Centre for Judicial Studies, Mr. João Miguel for hosting the Grand Final, as well as all the supporting staff for their support in making this successful event.

Bringing together future magistrates
The THEMIS Competition brings together future magistrates from different EU countries at a time when they are undergoing entry-level training and enables them to share common values, exchange new experiences and discuss areas of common interest. The THEMIS Competition provides an ideal forum in which to discuss EU and international law subjects, promote exchanges and experiences between participants, increase knowledge, encourage critical thinking and foster professional networks.

EJTN proudly supports the THEMIS Competition, which continues to provide a genuine skills-enhancing experience for future EU magistrates.