Immersion in environmental advocacy for law students

This year, the trial concerned a case dating back to July 2025: an illegal rave party, gathering some 1,200 people having been held at Ohey, near Namur, in the middle of a protected natural area. "This case is linked to this year's Fil Rouge, "Réenchantons la Terre".It involves a case that caused significant damage to nature, but also acts of violence, with and without a discriminatory motive, between a participant and a local resident", explains Emma Bourcelet, assistant at the Faculty of Law and co-organizer of the event. "In particular, the idea was to show how environmental criminal law can be a tool for defending nature."

Seven students carefully prepared their speeches, each in a different role: Théophile Renier, Aurélie Lemmens, Albiona Sefedini, Louis Jaspard, Dorien Huys, Nateo Carnot and Laly Vadevorst. The staff surrounding the project included: Nathalie Colette-Bazecq, Dean of the Faculty of Law, Amani Pici, PhD student, Amélie Lachapelle, UNamur doctorate in legal sciences, ELSA Namur (European Law Students' Association) and Emma Bourcelet.

Special guests

The Faculty of Law welcomed two guests: Julien Moinil, King's Public Prosecutor in Brussels and didactic collaborator in criminal law, who presided over the court during the mock trial, and Sarah Coisne, judge at the Liège Court of Appeal, who had provided the real case file that served as the basis for the facts submitted to the students.

"Julien Moinil's experience as a practitioner and alumnus of the Faculty was a real source of inspiration," Emma Bourcelet points out. "As for Sarah Coisne, she not only contributed to the deliberations for the verdict, but also shared her experience and the diversity of cases in environmental criminal law. The audience was thus able to appreciate the beauty and role of the law in shaping our world in the service of protecting living things. "

The pedagogical benefits of such an exercise for students are numerous! "First and foremost, it's a real collective intelligence process where personalities combine to give a unique color to the project. The rigor imposed pushes participants to develop a legal analysis applied to real facts, which enables them to go beyond pure theory. Building a coherent, relevant argument is an invaluable exercise for their future careers, whatever they may be. Finally, learning to speak, role-play and overcome certain fears is a major challenge. Seeing their evolution in just one month is impressive," enthuses Emma Bourcelet.

On this November 18, the emotion was palpable in UNamur's Pedro Arrupe auditorium. "These students are in their second year, they don't yet have all the criminal law material, they find out about the case a month before the event... and yet, the magic happens!" confides Emma Bourcelet.