Gray’s Inn is delighted to be collaborating with Gide once again on a French-English Law Essay Prize.
The judging panel will be chaired by Vice Treasurer of Gray’s Inn and President of the Judging Panel, Sir Andrew McFarlane. Sir Andrew McFarlane will be joined by Saadia Bhatty, Gide partner London; Michael Butcher, President of the Franco-British Data Society and Bencher of Gray’s Inn; Michael Collett, KC, Barrister at 20 Essex Chambers and Bencher of Gray’s Inn, and Dr Catherine Pedamon, Senior Lecturer, Westminster Law School.
Having launched the prize in 2022, we are now excited to be able to announce this year’s essay title. So, without further delay, we can reveal that the title of the French-English Law Essay Prize 2025 is as follows:
The French-English Law Essay Prize 2025 question
If you were advising an entrepreneur starting up a company that develops and sells AI products would you encourage them to do so under the French or English legal system?
You might like to consider:
Would your advice assume the products were sold and used globally and would it matter whether they were goods or services or a mixture of both.
Note: in answering this question, have in mind that you are writing advice as if you were a legal adviser explaining in English to an entrepreneur starting up a company that develops and sells AI products the relative advantages, disadvantages, risks etc. of doing so under French and English law. Express yourself clearly and directly and in explaining the law and legal implications accurately consider their practical application in a commercial context.
The essay should be the sole creation and original work of the entrant and must not be longer than 2,500 words.
For further guidance, see our scholarships webpage for details.
How to apply
The prize is open to all individuals who have been in full-time legal education for no more than six years and were still in education during academic year 2024/2025. There is no requirement for entrants to the competition to be a member of Gray’s Inn.
All entries are to be written in English and submitted by email to Gide at essayprize@gide.com
Submissions are required by the end of the day on Sunday 14 September 2025.
The winner of the competition will receive a prize of £1,500 plus a two-week paid internship with Gide’s London office; the runner-up will receive a prize of £1,000. The winning author’s essay will be published in the Inn’s Student Law Journal and on the Gide website.
Details of the title and a copy of the prize rules will be sent to all registered entrants. If you have yet to register for the prize and would like to then we invite you to email to register. A copy of the prize rules is also available via this email address.
We are very much looking forward to receiving your entries.
About Gide
Gide is a leading international law firm and the first to have originated in France. Founded in Paris in 1920, the firm now operates from 11 offices throughout the world. It has 500 lawyers, drawn from 35 different nationalities.
Gide offers some of the most respected specialists in each of the various sectors of national and international business law.