The graduation ceremony took place in the main lecture hall, where the family and friends of around fifty UIC Law and Criminology students were in attendance. During the emotional ceremony, José Luis Martínez López-Múñiz, the sponsor of the graduating class, referred to one of the meanings of “sponsor” as someone who is expected to give guidance and support to the people he is responsible for. Martínez said that he found that responsibility to be “both an honour and an overwhelming task”, and one that he aimed to fulfil as best as he could.

It was with this in mind that Martínez structured his keynote address and offered the new graduates advice for the future ahead of them. He encouraged them to be men and women who do not allow themselves to “adopt a position of sceptical relativism which encourages pragmatic and utilitarian positivism”, as it is far from the humanistic drive of a good legal professional. He also encouraged them to “remain free, but to be able to make commitments to others, and endeavour to discover the truth about things”.

After the keynote speaker, student representatives Maria Girbau, from the Faculty of Law, and Manuel Martínez, from the Faculty of Criminology, addressed the audience with speeches that highlighted the memories of their years spent at the UIC. “The close relationships among students, professors and the UIC staff”, said Martínez, “has made our journey through the UIC an enjoyable one. We are the result of the efforts made by them all”.

Finally, Javier Junceda, the Dean of the UIC Faculty of Legal and Political Sciences, thanked José Luis Martínez López-Múñiz once again for agreeing to be the sponsor of this graduating class. He encouraged the future lawyers to work hard because “with personal effort and commitment, there is no problem that cannot be solved”.