About the organizer/college/university
Symbiosis Law School, Pune (SLS-Pune) stands for excellence in legal education and is nestled in the city of Pune. Symbiosis Law School, Pune, is a constituent of Symbiosis International (Deemed University) and is one of the distinguished law schools in the country. Established in 1977, SLS-Pune, in a journey of 48 years has achieved various milestones in teaching, learning, research, and value inculcation. These novel practices have ensured a
bright future for its highly intellectual legal minds.
Since 2007, SLS-P has been ranked top 10 amongst more than 1000 Law Schools in India by the India Today-Nielsen survey. It was ranked 5 th in 2024 by the National Institution Ranking Framework (NIRF) of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, and also ranked as one of the top three leading law schools in the Super Excellence Survey 2019 of GHRDC. It was also conferred with the prestigious Gold Star Award by the Bar Council of India in February, 2013. Furthermore, Symbiosis International (Deemed University) is accredited with Grade A++ by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). Symbiosis Law School, Pune is recognized by the Bar Council of India vide BCI Registration. No.: BCI/LE/SSLC/PUNE/SIEC (DU)/01/2004.
About the Competition
After receiving an overwhelming response in the previous ten editions of Symbiosis Law School, Pune - International Criminal Trial Advocacy Competition, Symbiosis Law School, Pune is organizing the Eleventh Edition of the Symbiosis Law School, Pune – International Criminal Trial Advocacy Competition, 2026 [SICTA-2026] which is scheduled from April 2- 5, 2026. The Competition will be held in physical mode. Competition is based on the simulation of the Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court and pertains to rules and structure as enshrined in the Rome Statute of the ICC. The theme for the Eleventh edition of SICTA is “International conflict occasioned due to inequitable distribution of access to critical large language models, especially in the context of inter-governmental policies adverse to refugees and migrants.”
Eligibility
The competition shall be open to all students actively enrolled in Bachelors (5 Year Course and 3 Year Course) and Master’s Programme of Law. Exchange students may participate on behalf of their host university.
Team Size/Composition
The Competition is based on a simulation of the Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court and pertains to rules and structure as enshrined in the Rome Statute of ICC. The maximum number of participants per team shall be restricted to 3 (2 speakers & 1 researcher) or only 2 speakers. Each team will represent three sides - Prosecution, Defense, and the Victim(s) in the preliminary rounds of the Competition. There shall be three preliminary rounds followed by semi-final rounds and the final round.
Location
The Competition will be held physically for all national and international teams in Viman Nagar Campus of Symbiosis Law School, Pune.
Registration Procedure
It is an INVITE - ONLY Competition and limited to 24 teams. The registration is based on a first come first serve basis. The prospective teams should provisionally register for the Competition by sending an email to symbiosismoot@symlaw.ac.in on or before December 1, 2025 (23:59 IST). The subject of the email should be “Provisional Registration for the SLSP - International Criminal Trial Advocacy Competition, 2026”. The final registration by the participants must be completed by December 30, 2025. Kindly refer to the “Registration” section in the Rulebook for further details.
Fee Payment Details
The Registration fees is Rs.20,000/- (including GST) per national team and USD 300 for International Team (inclusive of food and accommodation for the dates of the competition).
The mode of payment and corresponding details for the registration fee shall be conveyed to the participants along with the official confirmation of their provisional registration.
Deadlines/Dates
1. Release of Compromis: December 11, 2025 (Thursday)
2. Last date for Provisional Registration: December 1, 2025 (Monday)
3. Last date for Final Registration: December 30, 2025 (Tuesday)
4. Last Date to seek Clarifications: December 29, 2025 (Monday)
5. Release of Clarifications: January 12, 2026 (Monday)
6. Submission of Memorials: March 6, 2026 (Friday)
7. Inauguration Ceremony: April 2, 2026 (Thursday)
8. Oral Rounds of the Competition: April 3-5, 2026 (Friday – Sunday)
There shall be three Preliminary rounds followed by the Semi-Final Rounds and the Final Round.
The primary components of a round will include:
Opening Statements by the Prosecutor and Defence Counsel and Victim Counsel’s Application for Recharacterization of Facts.
Examination-In-Chief/Cross Examination by the Prosecutor, Counsel for the Victims, and the Counsel for the Defence.
Closing Statements by the Prosecutor, Counsel for the Victims, and the Counsel for the Defence.
Email ID: symbiosismoot@symlaw.ac.in
Website: https://sicta.symlaw.ac.in/
Faculty in Charge: Dr. Ayush Goel, Prof. Jivantika Gulati, Dr. Swati Soni, Dr. Shweta Pathak
For any further queries, kindly reach out to the following members of the Organizing Committee:
1) Ms. Lekhana Muthakka M S, Convenor, SICTA OC, 2026 (+91 87627 58075)
(22010126133@symlaw.ac.in)
2) Ms. Pranavi Siddhartha, Convenor, SICTA OC, 2026 (+91 78928 97948)
(22010126107@symlaw.ac.in)
3) Ms. Adhisha Jain, Co-Convenor, SICTA OC, 2026 (+91 91168 15839)
(22010126183@symlaw.ac.in)
4) Ms. Anjika Das, Co-Convenor, SICTA OC, 2026 (+91 96631 77911)
(22010126243@symlaw.ac.in)
5) Ms. Namita Varshini B, Co-Convenor, SICTA OC, 2026 (+91 94876 70410)
(22010126162@symlaw.ac.in)
Note: Kindly find attached the Google Drive Link for the Competition documents.
https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/16VEX7OIFmPVWUR42s2XEP8w5eOIterm2
