Ms. Andrijana Mišović, doctoral candidate at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law, secretary of the Center for Human Rights and technical secretary of the Master in European Integration, was given an opportunity to be one of 250 participants of this year’s program of the Hague Academy of International Law in the field of Pubic International Law. In addition, on the basis of preliminary examination, she was accepted to attend the Directed Studies group limited to 30 exceptional attendees that already have advanced knowledge in this field, and, by virtue of the knowledge demonstrated during the final exam, she was awarded with the Diploma of this renowned institution.

The Hague Academy of International Law is an institution that organizes every summer, ever since 1923, courses in Public and Private International Law. Several thousands of young international lawyers have passed through the Academy until now. The Academy is well known for the quality of its lecturers, but also for its cooperation with International Court of Justice, which is situated in its immediate neighborhood.

Every year the Academy awards the Diploma to one (or two, at maximum) exceptional attendee who demonstrates extraordinary knowledge in the field of international law, and passes the written and oral examination. During the written part of the examination, for which only nine candidates qualified this year, it is expected from the candidate to write five pages long legal analysis of particular legal question that is revealed just before the exam. This year the question related to the principle res judicata in international law. Candidates were given the quotation from the judgment of the International Court of Justice in Nicaragua v Colombia  case, where the Court was dealing with this principle, and were expected to comment on it.

Candidates who show the significant knowledge of doctrinal approaches, judicial and arbitration practice, are invited to take part in the second – oral part of the exam.  Andrijana was chosen to be one of the six candidates who qualified for the oral exam. The oral exam consisted of candidates’ oral presentation of the randomly on the spot selected question (questions were taken out of the hat) from the field of International Public Law, and questions and answers communication with the Commission. This year’s Commission was composed of renowned international law professors: Secretary General, Yves Daudet – Emeritus Professor of the Law School Sorbona, Paris I University; Judge of the ICJ Mohamed Bennouna – diplomat and Professor from Morocco; Margaret Young – Associate Professor of the Melbourne University and  Anne-Thida Nordom –  Associate Professor of the University of Rouen.

This is the first time that the Diploma is awarded to the candidate from Serbia. What is more, this is the first time in the history of the Academy that the person form the region was chosen as a laureate of this prestigious award in the field of Public International Law. Before Andrijana, this Diploma was awarded only to Prof. Željko Matić from former Yugoslavia in 1960 for the area of Private International Law.  The list of all people awarded with this Diploma since 1950 until now is permanently available on the web site of the Hague Academy.