Serve society, people and the cause of justice , says Supreme Court Judge Sanjay Karol
Supreme Court Judge inaugurates 15th Leiden Sarin International Air Law Moot Court Competition
– AIL-Sarin National India Rounds of 15th Leiden Sarin International Air Law Moot Court Competition held at Army Institute of Law, Mohali
– Three teams from India to participate in international competition in April at Mexico City
Mohali 17 February 2024: Supreme Court Judge, Justice Sanjay Karol inaugurated the AIL Sarin National Rounds of the 15th Sarin International Air Law Moot Court Competition at the Army Institute of Law, here today.
Delivering the inaugural address, Justice Sanjay Karol, commended the Sarin Memorial Legal Aid Foundation for preparing young lawyers in a very specialised arena of Air Law in association with the Netherlands’ Leiden University. Addressing the young lawyers and participating teams from across the country, he emphasized the need for every professional should be to serve the society and its people by upholding the cause of justice for larger public good.
He emphasized the need for the international air law specialists to consider the impact of the aviation industry on global environment, an area hitherto not studied.
With nearly 4.17 lakh people travelling daily on domestic circuts, the aviation industry’s responsibility grows to ensure safety, efficiency, and security, and there should be legal check on refund policies as well as the unbridled escalated pricing of air tickets by airlines during crisis situations, Justice Karol remarked, especially when air travel is becoming a necessity and is no longer a rich man’s prerogative.
There is a need, he said, also to make the air booking apps more useful for the masses by making them vernacular language friendly.
Justice G.S. Sandhawalia, Acting Chief Justice, Punjab and Haryana High Court in his presidential remarks advised the young lawyers to believe in themselves, master the research and presentation skills, develop good memory, intern and litigate in the courts to become the best in their fields.
Twelve teams from the top national law universities of India participated for the Indian national rounds out of which three teams qualified who would be participating in the international moot court competition from 18-20 April 2024 in Mexico City.
The day-long proceedings of the competition was judged by a panel of 35 experts including four judges from the Panjab and Haryana High Court, including Justice Deepak Sibal, Justice Vikas Bahl, Justice Vikas Suri and Justice Aman Chaudhary.
Senior Advocate and secretary general of the Foundation, M.L. Sarin expressed gratitude to the Army Institute of Law for hosting this event regularly since its inception and of course the Leiden University which partnered with the Sarin Foundation to organise this unique moot court competition on air law, the only one in the world.
The finals shall see top teams from Greece, USA, Germany, France, Indonesia, Turkey, Singapore, the Netherlands, South Korea, Hongkong, Spain, China and India will compete for the top laurels in this competition.
Nitin Sarin, Trustee, and an air-law and aircraft finance specialist, in his welcome address said that this is the only moot court competition held in the world on air law and holds special importance since Indian aviation industry is slated to grow many times over in the coming decades. He also emphasised the need for students of law to sharpen their all round skills to prepare themselves for the real world.
The Foundation established in memory of late Shri H.L. Sarin, and Late Shri R.L. Sarin, is managed by young lawyers and law students to spread legal literacy and take up causes of general public importance for legal redressal, besides training young lawyers in air law through international moot court competition, he said.
Some of the countries that hosted this international moot court competition on air law included Dubai, Turkey, Abu Dhabi, Bucharest, Beijing, Jakarta, Malta, Seoul, India and the Netherlands Three editions were also held virtually during the pandemic.
