Once a Double Degree student, always part of the community The French & English Law Double Degree at Essex has shaped generations of lawyers who move confidently between legal systems, languages and countries. As alumni, you know how decisive this experience can be. We are now creating a dedicated fund to support student‑led events and opportunities throughout the year – from advocacy competitions and academic workshops to networking events and alumni talks. By contributing regularly, you help ensure that these activities remain accessible to all students, regardless of background, and you strengthen the bonds between past, present and future cohorts. Your support will allow us to turn the Double Degree into an even more vibrant, intergenerational community – one where each cohort helps the next to go further.
Supporting the French & English Law Double Degree at Essex The French & English Law Double Degree at Essex has always been more than a set of modules: it is a community. As alumni, you know how formative this program can be – academically, professionally and personally. Today, we want to build on that legacy by creating a stable fund dedicated to supporting student‑led activities throughout the year and strengthening the links between current, past and future cohorts. Our aim is to ensure that every generation of students can benefit from a rich intellectual and professional life around the Double Degree: events that connect them with practitioners and academics, spaces where they can experiment, debate and advocate, and opportunities to develop the confidence and skills that many of you have carried into your careers. Your support will help us make these activities accessible for all students and will embed a culture of mentoring and mutual support across cohorts. What your contribution will support Over the course of the academic year, we plan to fund a series of key events and initiatives, including:
- The journée du droit (October)
The “Journée du droit” is an annual initiative led by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs that puts law at the center of France’s diplomatic action throughout the month of October. It echoes the French “Nuit du droit”, an annual event organised in France by the Conseil constitutionnel, and mobilises embassies, permanent representations, consulates, Alliances françaises and Instituts français worldwide to organise a wide range of legal events aimed at both specialist audiences and the general public. Our ambition is for the next edition of this Journée du droit to be hosted by the French & English Law Double Degree at the French Embassy in London, where Laure Sauvé and Etienne Durand, both teaching on the program, will present the book Introduction to French Law, which they recently co‑authored with French academics. This event will also serve as the starting point for a renewed organisation of the alumni network, structured around regular opportunities for dialogue between cohorts, professional mentoring, and joint projects exploring the evolving relationships between French and English law.
- ORAS workshops (November–December and February–March)
ORAS! is an inter‑university mooting and eloquence competition bringing together students from French & English double degree law programs across the UK and France. It is of crucial significance for the Double Degree program, as it enables students to engage fully in bilingual and bicultural practices of law. Our aim is therefore to support Essex students’ full participation in ORAS! by funding preparation workshops, internal selection rounds and travel to the semi‑finals and finals, so that they can train intensively in bilingual advocacy and showcase Essex’s excellence alongside partner institutions in this flagship competition.
- Eloquence Competition (January)
This competition is designed for students who are not taking part in ORAS!, giving them a dedicated opportunity to strengthen their advocacy and public‑speaking skills. Inspired by the traditional “concours de plaidoirie” in French universities, it will invite students to debate in French on topics that go beyond strictly legal questions and engage with broader social, political and ethical issues. By encouraging students to argue, persuade and debate in French, the competition will help them gain confidence, develop a clear and convincing speaking style, and cultivate the reflexes they will need in their future professional lives. It will also create a shared moment for the whole Double Degree community, where different cohorts can exchange ideas, support one another and showcase the richness of their bicultural training
- 24‑Hour Lesson Competition (March)
In March 2025, students from the Double Degree program experience this one-of-a-kind competition, which mirrors a key stage of the French concours d’agrégatin, which academics must pass to become full professors. Over 24 intense hours, participants dived deep into a challenging legal topic, preparing a 45-minute lecture (Leçon) to deliver the next day. More than just an exercise, it’s a test of teamwork, critical thinking, and legal mastery, pushing students to explore the connections between different legal disciplines. Our goal is now to turn the 24‑Hour Lesson into a signature annual event of the French & English Law Double Degree. With your support, we will be able to cover organisational costs (materials, guest assessors, prizes, recording and dissemination of the best lectures) and ensure that each new cohort can take part in this demanding and prestigious exercise, which prepares them for high‑level academic and professional challenges.
- Networking events (May)
Each year, the selection interviews for the Double Degree take place in France, at the universities of our partner institutions. On this occasion, a networking event will be organised in each host city, bringing together third‑year students who have returned to France, Double Degree staff, and alumni of the program. These events will create a structured space for conversation, where students can ask concrete questions about career paths, further study and life after the Double Degree, while alumni can share their experience and maintain a living connection with the program. Beyond individual encounters, these networking events are intended to strengthen the collective identity of the French & English Law Double Degree across all partner universities. They will help to build local micro‑communities of current students and graduates, to foster a culture of mutual support, and to raise the profile of the program among practitioners and institutions in each region. Funding will allow us to cover venue costs, basic hospitality and travel where needed, ensuring that these meetings become a regular and visible feature of the Double Degree calendar.
- Closing event. – Journée sur l’état du droit français (June)
This will serve as a closing event of the academic year. The goal is to bring together staff–student pairs to present on recent developments in French law across the core subjects of the Double Degree. The format is deliberately original: each panel will be co‑constructed and co‑presented by an academic and a student, giving students a rare opportunity to step into a quasi‑professional role and speak alongside their teachers. At the same time, the Journée sur l’état du droit français will showcase the intellectual life of the French & English Law Double Degree to a wider audience – including alumni, practitioners and partners – and reinforce the program’s visibility as a place where rigorous legal training goes hand in hand with genuine student involvement.
Two main strands of support The activities supported by the Fund are organised around two main strands. The first strand “Expand Your Learning Experience at Essex” brings together activities that deepen students’ intellectual engagement within the Double Degree and help them develop confidence, analytical rigor and public‑speaking skills in a bilingual environment. This strand includes the Eloquence Competition, the 24‑Hour Lesson Competition, and the Journée sur l’état du droit français. The second strand “Expand Your Career Potential Beyond Essex”, brings together activities that connect students with the wider legal and diplomatic world and strengthen the links between current students and alumni. This strand includes the Journée du droit, ORAS!, and the networking events organised alongside recruitment activities.
