In the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court, the largest moot court competition in the world, the University of Vienna again achieved impressive success this year. The Viennese team reached the round of sixteen in the "International Rounds", leaving universities such as Harvard, Heidelberg and the National University of Singapore behind. In addition, the team was recognised for the 13th-best overall performance and two students for their performance as Top 50 Oralists, out of more than 500 students.
In addition to being recognised as Octofinalists in the International Rounds, the Vienna team had already won the European Friendship Rounds in Geneva in March, where they beat Hungary’s Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) and 17 other teams. In addition, Sophie Köck was awarded as the best speaker of the tournament. The University of Vienna was represented this year by Adela Zinschitz, Maria Huber, Sergej Stoma and Sophie Köck, who initially prepared two briefs for the plaintiff and defendant sides since October last year and intensively prepared for the oral phase since January.
The Jessup Moot Court is the oldest and most renowned international law competition in the world. Based on a fictitious dispute between two states, the students represent the applicant and respondent sides before the International Court of Justice. This year’s case concerned demilitarisation treaties, prohibition of the use of force and self-defence, standards of treatment of prisoners of war, the legality of severe economic sanctions and the environmental obligations of states in dealing with hazardous plastic waste. The competition was held in Washington, D.C., for the first time since 2019, after the pandemic necessitated a cancellation and, in recent years, an online version. As a result, for the first time in four years, over 130 teams and more than 200 judges were able to come together for competition, academic exchange and networking. In total, more than 600 teams took part, of which 135 qualified for the final rounds in April. The final round is traditionally held in front of judges of the International Court of Justice, many of whom were once participants of the Jessup themselves and thus started their careers in international law. This year, the team from the University of Amsterdam won for the first time, beating Peking University in the final.
The team was coached this year by Martin Baumgartner, Markus Stemeseder and Maximilian Weninger. The team was supported by the University of Vienna, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Schönherr Rechtsanwälte and Völkl Rechtsanwälte.
More information on the Moot Court: https://ilmc.univie.ac.at/
