The following criteria were considered for the purpoise of ranking the finalist essays:

-	Quality of analysis (is it convincing, substantiated, understandable?)
-	Thoroughness of research (types and varieties of source material)
-	Originality (even though the topic may have been discussed in various publications, is the author's approach innovative?)
-	Interest of the subject matter
-	Quality of writing (style, clarity, organization).

The Ranking of the Finalist Essays for the 2008 competition is:

1. Nathalie Hofmann [Germany], "A Matter of Interpretation: Art. 7 and the UK's Reluctance to Ratify the CISG" or "Good Faith - An obstacle to the harmonization of contract law in Europe?"

2. Juraj Kotrusz [Slovak Republic], "Gap-Filling of CISG by the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts"

3. Ioulia Dolganova & Marcelo Boff Lorenzen [Brazil], "The Brazilian Adhesion to the 1980 UN Vienna Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods"

4. Masha Brar [India], "India and the United Nations Convention on Contracts on International Sales of Goods (1980)"