A team of S.J. Quinney College of Law students have qualified for the White & Case International Rounds of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition for the first time in history.
The U’s team of Tejay Coon, David Ferguson, Brent Huff, Charlotte Kiefer and Liz Thomas qualified for the international rounds at a regional competition held earlier this month in Denver. The team qualified to advance by making the final round in Denver, where they were narrowly beaten by Stanford in a split decision.
Every year, about 600 teams from approximately 100 countries compete in the tournament. The best teams in the regional competitions held throughout the world qualify for the international rounds held annually in Washington D.C. to coincide with the American Society of International Law Conference.
At the competition, students compete by solving issues based on cutting edge issues facing the international community. This year, the complex problem raised focused on the international law relating to surveillance, espionage, cyber attacks, and the tensions between human rights and national security.
In getting to the final, the team scored 3-1 in the preliminary rounds, beating every team in the orals- Kansas (seeded 1) Minnesota (seeded 3) Washburn and St. Thomas. The team beat Oklahoma City University in the quarter final and University of Missouri Kansas City in the semis. The team received the 9th best brief award; with Thomas scoring as the 6th best oralist and Huff scoring as 8th best oralist.
“We are very proud of their achievements, their wonderful mooting skills and deep knowledge of international law; but we are equally proud of their sportsmanship, their team spirit which was so essential for success,” said Tony Anghie, coach of the team and a law professor at S.J. Quinney.