– Photo courtesy of Wayne Law
Wayne State University Law School Jessup International Law Moot Court Team members are (left to right) Shahad Atiya, Elaina Bailey, Sarah Cravens, Elizabeth Cacevic and Shahar Ben-Josef.
For the second consecutive year and the third time in the past four years, Wayne State University Law School's team won the U.S. Midwest Regional of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition.
Wayne Law's team topped the field of 20 law schools at the competition Thursday, Feb. 4, through Sunday, Feb. 7, at Loyola University School of Law in Chicago. The team also won the award for Best Memorial.
Wayne Law will advance to the White & Case International Rounds of the Jessup competition from March 27 through April 2 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Wayne Law will compete against schools from across the globe in hopes of taking home the top prize. The international rounds are both an educational experience and cultural extravaganza. The weeklong schedule of events is filled with competitive matches, panel discussions and social events.
Wayne Law team members are third-year students Shahad Atiya of Bloomfield Hills, Shahar Ben-Josef of Detroit and Elizabeth Cacevic of Macomb Township and second-year students Elaina Bailey of Taylor and Sarah Cravens of Detroit. Professor Gregory Fox, director of Wayne Law's Program for International Legal Studies, is the team's faculty advisor.
In its 57th year, the Jessup competition is the world's largest moot court competition with participants from 550 law schools representing more than 80 countries.
At the regional competition, the Wayne Law team won three of four rounds in the preliminary oral arguments, defeating Northern Illinois University, Northwestern University and Michigan State University.
Wayne Law's team moved onto the quarterfinals, where it defeated Syracuse University. In the semifinals, it defeated Case Western Reserve University. In the final round, the team defeated Ohio Northern University to take home the regional championship.
For the Jessup competition, the International Law Students Association creates and releases a Special Agreement each fall that outlines the issues and facts behind a hypothetical international legal dispute before the International Court of Justice (World Court). Wayne Law Jessup members research, write and submit a memorial and prepare for the regional competition by participating in various moot arguments in front of faculty and practicing attorneys around the metro Detroit area.
This year's Jessup problem concerns the legality of mass surveillance programs and the international legal consequences of cyberattacks attributable to states.
Published: Thu, Feb 18, 2016
