The European Law Students' Association

Celebrating its 20th anniversary last year, the European Law Students Association (ELSA) is the largest independent association for law students and young lawyers in the world. And, as Suzanne Starbuck found out, it's not hard to see why.

LAW has always been a popular choice among students. After all, no matter what state the economy is in, disputes will still arise and lawyers will still be called upon to resolve them. This probably explains why associations representing law students around the world have a high number of members and an active programme of events. One such body is the European Law Students Association, or ELSA.

Formed in 1981 by law students hailing from Austria, Hungary, Poland and West Germany, ELSA has grown to become the world's largest independent association for students studying law. Stretching across 200 universities in forty different European countries, it has a membership of more than 30,000.

ELSA has certainly got plenty to live up to. Its vision is, "A just world in which there is respect for human dignity and cultural diversity". Its purpose is, "To contribute to legal education, to foster mutual understanding and to promote social responsibility of law students and young lawyers." Its method is, "To provide opportunities for law students and young lawyers to learn about other cultures and legal systems in a spirit of critical dialogue and scientific co-operation". One area it has certainly met its aims is in providing educational opportunities and encouraging cultural diversity. No wonder so many students flock to its doors.

ELSA membership offers a number of benefits:

  • Being part of a network of more than 30,000 like-minded members;
  • Improving academic skills through seminars, conferences, etc;
  • Gaining close contact with the professional world;
  • Acquiring experience of different legal systems and teamwork skills.

Among ELSA's most attractive benefits are its research facilities and services. ELSA runs regular Legal Research Groups (LRG) throughout Europe to enable students to gain the necessary research skills for their professional life. After all, today's law students are tomorrow's judges, advocates, partners, academics, politicians and policy-makers. Each LRG is made up of three-to-six law students and/or young lawyers who are interested in a specific field of law and have decided to carry out research in that area. In essence, the LRGs are the ideal opportunity to learn, exchange ideas and make new contacts.

The ELSA Law Web is another valuable link in the provision of research and information. Available via the ELSA website (www.elsa.org), the ELSA Law Web is a collection of articles and links across the legal spectrum. Students can search the law web by keyword, country or category of law to find articles and websites of interest.

Still on the subject of research, ELSA also issues a number of publications aimed at students, lawyers, universities and institutions worldwide. Along with Synergy, its international members' magazine, it also publishes the ELSA Guide to Legal Studies in Europe, International Criminal Court Handbook, UN and Council of Europe Reports, and its online publication, ELSA Selected Papers on European Law.

Synergy was launched in 1987 and is produced twice a year. An important part of keeping 30,000 members in touch with each other, Synergy gives students the chance to get their own articles published, promote events and share experiences. The publications also give law students and young lawyers the chance to gather information about other legal systems and cultures across Europe.

This exposure to other legal systems is one of the key aims of ELSA. As the website says, "Law students' involvement in ELSA exposes them to international co-operation in their formative, early years, making them better equipped for the challenges of tomorrow."

STEP, ELSA's Student Trainee Exchange Programme, is a key part of this process enabling students to get first-hand exposure to the legal procedures of another country by organising work experience in law firms, courts, public institutions, departments, consulting firms and international organisations. STEP enjoys the support of its development partner, Andersen Legal. Each year, ELSA offers around 450 traineeship opportunities throughout Europe, and occasionally other parts of the world. As well as providing experience, STEP can give students valuable contacts for their future employment too.

So wide-reaching is its presence in Europe, ELSA has attracted the attention of a number of leading names in the legal community. Among its corporate partners are Clifford Chance, CMS, KLegal, PricewaterhouseCoopers and its website development partner, Juriforum, a Wolters Kluwer initiative. The list doesn't stop there. Supporters also include Allen & Overy, the International Bar Association, Reuters, The Lawyer.com, Martindale-Hubbell, Microsoft Thomson and the European Commission. All of these, no doubt, recognise the important role ELSA plays in promoting and encouraging young lawyers. In fact, 2000 saw ELSA gain consultative status with the Council of Europe, giving its members a real presence at international level.

ELSA's European presence has also led to about fifty ELSA seminars and conferences each year. Past seminars include Protection of Human Rights in Comparative Perspectives, held in Croatia, INTERLAW - Law of Data Highway, held in Germany, and Law in China, also held in Germany.

ELSA also organises a number of seminars devoted to maritime law. For example, the Norway branch held a seminar on Oil & Gas in a Legal Perspective, including shipping and environmental law, while ELSA's France branch ran a conference in 2000 devoted to the Erika and Ievoli Sun incidents. The German office also organised a tour of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in July last year.

But it is perhaps the Maltese branch where most of the maritime law activity takes place. ELSA Malta is sponsored by the Malta Maritime Authority and enjoys good contact with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) through the International Maritime Law Institute (IMLI). It has held a number of events looking at developments in maritime law, including a one-day seminar on maritime arbitration and the Jessup Moot Court Competition, which focuses mainly on the law of the sea. 2002 will also see ELSA Malta host an international maritime law seminar. ELSA Romania also has a maritime law event in the pipeline for this year, with a special focus on the Black Sea region.

ELSA membership doesn't have to stop when you are no longer a student or trainee lawyer. ELSA's Lawyer Society (ELS) is an organisation for former members of ELSA and other law graduates. Founded in 1991, it also had something to celebrate last year - its tenth anniversary. Today, ELSA boasts more than 200 members in 24 different countries.

ELSA has worldwide contacts, co-operating with law student associations in North America, Japan, Australia, South Africa and the Ivory Coast. So no matter where you are, ELSA is never that far away.