April 2026
An intriguing mix of creativity, technology, and business, intellectual property today raises questions that go beyond the traditional legal framework, adding strategic and ethical dimensions to the craft. Equally noteworthy, this field is shaped in real time by each generation of practitioners — current and upcoming.
It is within this framework that BACIU PARTNERS organized the 4th edition of the Intellectual Property Moot Court Competition, a format designed by the firm to bridge the gap between academic theory and the intricacies of legal practice.
Bridging the Gap Between Theory and Practice
Welcoming 3rd- and 4th-year law students, the competition took place between March and April 2026, organized in partnership with ELSA Bucharest, the local chapter of the European students’ organization. The journey culminated around World Intellectual Property Day with a dedicated feedback session — a BACIU PARTNERS signature touch, deeply embedded in the firm’s overall business approach.
The initiative was driven by a BACIU PARTNERS team including Ileana Nicolescu-Decsei, Iulia Ghiță, Denisa Drăgușin, and Marta Datcu, who ensured both rigor and relevance throughout the process.
This year, 28 teams stepped into the competition, engaging with a case developed by our experts to challenge their analytical limits — practical, nuanced, and anchored in real-world scenarios.
The 2026 case scenario drew on the intersection of intellectual property and sport, bringing forward legal questions rooted in real-world dynamics. In a year where sport takes center stage, from the Winter Olympic Games to the FIFA World Cup, millions of spectators engage with intellectual property in all its forms. It is also the year in which World Intellectual Property Day focuses on “IP and Sports: Ready, Set, Innovate”, a theme promoted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
Following the written phase, six teams advanced to the oral rounds, hosted by the Bucharest Court of Appeal, where legal reasoning met debate and public speaking under the scrutiny of a jury coordinated by Managing Partner Ana-Maria Baciu.
“For me, the essential part is that the students participating in this project do so because they want to be there, not because they have to. This is the benchmark I dearly wish for us to maintain. On the merits, this year, perhaps more than in previous years, I noticed and appreciated a very effective strategy in the presentation of pleadings, as well as the overall vision demonstrated by the participating teams,” stated Ana-Maria Baciu at the conclusion of the competition.
A Platform that Grows with Each Edition
The winning team of the fourth edition was comprised of Miruna Teodora Nicolae and Maria Toma. The teams in second and third place were formed by Thea Onofrei and Maria Grădinarul, and Alexandra Mutuzac and Runa-Ileana Petrache, respectively.
Additionally, prizes were awarded for Best Oralist (Thea Onofrei), as well as a special mention for Best Oralist in the Final (Miruna Teodora Nicolae).
Year after year, the competition continues to evolve, refining its format, integrating feedback, and strengthening its role as a space where future professionals test ideas, challenge assumptions, and build confidence.
“The fourth edition of the Intellectual Property Moot Court Competition confirmed, through the participants’ level of engagement, that we are successfully and authentically conveying the values we promote: curiosity, ingenuity, sustained effort, and consistency. The competition continues to attract students motivated by challenges, who leverage the guidance we offer to build papers on topics they haven’t yet had the chance to study in depth at university, and who often, quite remarkably, manage to convincingly interpret roles that require much more experience than they currently possess,” noted Ileana Nicolescu-Decsei, Master of Ceremonies and a key promoter of the initiative since its launch in 2023.
Beyond results, what stays with all those contributing to a successful event is the participants’ ability to think in options, conceive creative strategies, and deliver meaningful arguments in a field that never stands still.
“I was impressed by the seriousness with which the students approached this exercise. Beyond the academic stakes, I felt the participants became involved as if they were representing a real client. They weren’t satisfied with simply ‘reciting’ theory; they came forward with unexpected ideas. Their determination stayed with me, as did the immense effort they invested in their free time for a voluntary competition. I see in this a genuine passion for law, which convinced me they will become exceptional professionals,” highlighted Iulia Ghiță, author of the competition case and member of the jury.
“Looking at this experience as a whole, one of the main highlights was the high level of involvement and seriousness with which the students approached the competition. They demonstrated not only a solid understanding of legal concepts in intellectual property (a subject many had not yet studied), but also the ability to apply them in practice, in a structured and well-argued manner,” added Denisa Drăgușin, who was involved in the review of the written memorials.
“I was pleasantly surprised to see highly motivated and well-prepared students, both in terms of research and argument presentation. I was also impressed by the performance they delivered during the final round of oral pleadings, which stood as a testament to sustained effort throughout an intense period,” concluded Marta Datcu, involved in both the conceptual phase and the competition stages.
Celebrating Innovation
By organizing the Intellectual Property Moot Court Competition, BACIU PARTNERS aims to create an elite collaborative environment where combining legal knowledge with elements of creativity and communication is fundamental. This is also our way of marking World Intellectual Property Day (April 26), a global event curated by the WIPO to raise awareness of the role intellectual property plays in encouraging innovation (details are available here: https://www.wipo.int/en/web/ipday).
Happy World Intellectual Property Day!
BACIU PARTNERS is a Leading Partner to ELSA Bucharest for the academic year 2025-2026.
For more details about our approach and objectives, please contact: Ileana Nicolescu, Raluca Comănescu and Anca Stefanescu Toma.