Legal committee interview - Stefan Patrut

The Legal committee, although not present at many MUN conferences, is considered one of the most prestigious and engaging committees, and has become a staple for many delegates, one of them being Stefan Patrut. Stefan is well accustomed with the Romanian MUN scene, having attended 11 conferences in varying roles, but his favourite committee by far is the Legal committee. Thus, he has kindly offered to give us an insight into his experience, to give you a better idea of what it is truly like and how much of an impact it can have on delegates and on the entire world.

Q: Thank you for sitting down with me, to begin, could you please tell me a bit about your experience in the Legal committee as a whole?

Stefan: My first experience in the legal committee was as a delegate at GALMUN back in 2019, it was my fourth MUN, and it was also my first MUN that I won the Best Delegate award in. I represented Russia and the topic was something to do with the rights of artificial intelligence. It was really amazing and I felt really at home in that committee.

My second time was as a chairperson at VianuMUN 2020. It was different to see it from the eyes of a chairperson, and I can say that writing the study guide was painful; we had to look for so many conventions and both the topics were hard, and it came as a realisation: I personally want to pursue law, specifically international law, in the future, but seeing so many documents about only two topics, it was eye-opening for me, but also scary. Regardless, it was amazing, I really liked it, and the delegates seemed to like it as well. The topics were veto power and self-determination, but we didn’t get to discuss self-determination.

And my third and last time in the Legal committee was at IasiMUN 2021 online, and I represented the delegate of Taiwan. Our topic was “reform of the United Nations''. It was a very broad topic, but it was mostly divided into 3 things: reform of the Security Council, sexual crimes committed by UN peace-keeping troops, and representation in the UN, which was kind of centered around my country. For example, Taiwan doesn’t even have observer status in the World Health Organisation, due to mainland China’s influence, and it was very difficult to debate. But it was very interesting, and it also opened me to learn more about cross-trade relations between China and Taiwan, and Taiwanese inner politics and history.

Q: You mentioned all of these topics and how they are kind of inter-connected and how they interact with the world today, so what role in general and impact do you think that the Legal committee has on the world?

Stefan: I think that the Legal committee, like the real UN in New York, has the impact of ensuring what the law usually means; it means equality, it means judgement, and it means fairness and the rule of law in the world. And within the UN, it also ensures that the law is constructed so that it benefits humanity and is in accordance with the principles of the UN and the UN charter.

Q: Now more than ever, international law seems to be kind of wavering, and there’s a lot of flagrant violations that aren’t being properly addressed, or even at all. How do you think we can work towards solving them?

Stefan: If we’re talking about the UN's role in this, it’s clear that reform within the UN is needed, which should, first of all, make it a more democratic institution (diminishing or removing veto power and ensuring representation for all states), and also consolidate the role of the UN and its bodies, especially ICJ and INTERPOL, on the global scene. As for what one citizen can do on their own, it isn’t my place to say, but voting for a better future, demanding an end to corruption, pressuring organisations and states to act according to international law, and informing others of these violations are all steps that can be taken.

Q: That makes sense, and also you initially said that you had to look through a lot of legal documents, so for delegates that want to enter this committee, and aren’t necessarily used to this kind of reading, what advice would you give them?

Stefan: Well, you’re not required to go through all of these legal documents, but if you’re really passionate about law, being a delegate in the Legal committee will not only provide you with a reason to research and to go through them and get accustomed with their structure and how they work, but also an opportunity to see how these documents are debated and see different opinions on them. Generally, you don’t need to know every clause of every resolution related to the topic, so long as you understand what is allowed, what is prohibited, and what those documents translate to in the real world. Understanding that is the first step, and looking at the documents is the second.

Q: I get that, and I feel like in general, because of this reputation that it has, it’s usually ignored at MUNs, for more “conventionally exciting” committees, so what would you say to people to try to convince them to join? Stefan: I honestly believe that in some cases, especially if the delegates have a lot of experience, the Legal committee can be the hardest committee of any MUN, not only because it’s hardest to research your stance and look through all the documents, but also because a lot of countries have varying views, and a lot of Legal committees have topics related to the inner-workings of the UN. If you’re looking for a dynamic committee, and if the delegates are prepared for that, then I believe that it can be something very challenging in a good way. But it can also be a more relaxed experience, it depends on the topic, so it can go either way: a very hard committee for advanced delegates, or a moderate committee where you can be as creative and inventive as you want to be.

Q: And given that it can also be so hard, how did you actually manage to cope with it? I mean you had two very difficult countries to represent, and you still managed to get the Best Delegate award. How did you do it? Stefan: In GALMUN I tried to do what I said in my last answer, and be creative and inventive in my resolution, and I worked really hard on it; that was something that I believe granted me Best Delegate over the delegate that won Best Speaker (the second award). In general, I just tried to be as proactive as possible, and bring up as much pre-existing relevant paperwork. And as for IasiMUN, I tried being less creative, honestly, I tried to be more precise, and I gave very academic solutions.

Q: So then, with all of this in mind, do you think that there are any lessons that you’ve learned from your experience, other than obviously, what the law is really like and what a legal career would be like?

Stefan: Well, I was going to say that, but besides that, it was really just amazing to see this world of law and of opinions on law and I never thought it would be this expansive. I believe the Legal committee is just such a nice committee, and all the other delegates are in the same spirit usually, and are interested in law and find it fascinating. Honestly, it’s the Legal committee, it’s about law, but I think that that’s what makes it my favourite committee and what makes it so endearing to many others.

Q: You kind of answered this throughout all of your answers, but why the Legal committee? What attracted you to it at the very beginning, and what kept you going? Stefan: What attracted me to my first Legal committee was the topic, and I wanted something different. Security Council and ICJ were too advanced for me, so I had to choose Legal if I wanted something new. I was happy to choose it though, because it seemed attractive and very dystopian. And then after my first experience, I knew I was inclined to choose the Legal committee; honestly, any topic that has to do with the UN itself, I will find very attractive, and it just so happens that the Legal committee is usually that place. But regardless, I just love the committee, I love what delegates you usually find there, and it has a special place in my heart.

Q: That’s really sweet! Do you think there’s anything else you could say to convince someone to try it out if they’re hesitant or if they’re inclined to choose something else?

Stefan: It depends on why they’re hesitant. If it’s because they believe it will be boring, well it probably will be boring in some parts, but it’s like chess: after you master it, it’s so interesting to see all this lengthy history of game analysis and of everything. It gets very interesting after you get past the boring things and the research. If they’re unwilling to join because they believe it will be too hard or too easy, again it depends on the topic, but, usually, you can be an inexperienced delegate and still have an impact in the committee, or you can be a very experienced and good delegate and be a force. You can be anything.

Q: I really liked that analogy with chess, I feel like it really brings another dimension to the committee. Is there anything else that you want to add before we finish? Stefan: There will probably be a Legal committee at next year’s edition of BacauMUN, and there’s a chance I will be chairing. And dear Delegate Snapshots readers, give legal more love!