Members of a University of Queensland law moot team have become international champions after winning the final of a prestigious global mooting competition.
After defeating the team from Malaysia’s International Islamic University, the UQ Law School Jessup Moot team won the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in Washington, USA.
Comprised of the best competitors from 85 countries around the world, 103 teams took part in the competition in Washington that concluded with the final on April 2. The competition is the largest of its kind internationally.
The competition placed students in a hypothetical legal case as representatives in a dispute before an International Court of Justice.
Law School Head and Sir Gerard Brennan Professor of Law Charles Rickett said the win was a marvellous achievement and demonstrated the high standard of UQ’s Law School students and the commitment of its staff.
The UQ team consisted of Ruth Catts, Stephen Colditz, Julian Ensbey, Cameron Forsaith and Nick Luke.
The team was coached by UQ senior lecturer Dr Anthony Cassimatis who was extremely proud of the team’s achievement.
“The Jessup Moot team’s performance was simply outstanding and was the result of rigorous team preparation in terms of both legal research and advocacy training,” Dr Cassimatis said.
He said the world championship title had already lifted the Law School’s reputation both in the region and throughout the world.
The world title is a massive victory for UQ and continues a tradition of strong performances in the Jessup competition by past UQ teams.
The University has secured a place in the quarter-finals of the Australian rounds for the past six years, winning in 2005 and reaching the international finals in 2002 and 2003.
In 2004, the UQ team received the Richard R Baxter award for the best respondent memorial in the world.
The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition was founded in 1959 and teams from over 80 countries, representing more than 500 law schools, now compete annually in the competition’s regional rounds.
Media: For more information, contact Dr Anthony Cassimatis from UQ’s Law School (telephone 07 3365 2446, email: a.cassimatis@law.uq.edu.au) or Elizabeth Kerr at UQ Communications (telephone 07 3365 2339 or email: e.kerr@uq.edu.au).
