During the last two moot competition seasons, King’s students maintained their status as a competitive force to be reckoned with. This year has started off in a similar vein, with two teams of students representing the UK and King’s has progressed to the International Rounds of the Jessup Moot, heralding a record ninth successive year for King’s students at the competition. Another team representing King’s for the European Law Moot Court competition won an award for the Best Written Pleadings.

What is a moot?

A moot is a mock court proceeding where two opposing teams of advocates argue a fictitious case before a judge or panel of judges. Participants compete to make the best presentation of their respective legal arguments and a moot tests reasoning and debating skills. Points are awarded for skills in analysis, advocacy and research.

European Law Moot Court (15-18 February, Vienna)

King’s students Radu Greece, Maria Raduleacu, Mireia Montane and Charlotte Papaiens de Morchoven formed part of the team who won the Best Written Pleadings award at the 2024 EU Moot Court in Vienna. The team had the best written submissions from over 80 submissions by universities from all over Europe and the US.

They will attend the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg between 10 and 13 April to be awarded their prize. The Best Written Pleadings Team is awarded a Plaque of Honour for having received the highest average score for the written submissions. Moreover, the Best Written Pleadings will be published in the next edition of The European Law Moot Court (ELMC) Book. 

The European Law Moot Court takes place annually and is an international competition for students with an interest in EU law. Founded in 1988, it is organised by the ELMC Society and is considered the most prestigious moot court within the field of European Union Law.

The team was coached by two PhD students, Nina Hart, Miriam Schuler and assisted by Dr Darren Harvey, Senior Lecturer at The Dickson Poon School of Law.

The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (16-18 February, Lincolns Inn)

Extending its own UK National Rounds record, King’s will advance to the International Rounds of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition for a ninth consecutive year.

The team were UK National Championship Finalists, following a strong performance in the preliminary rounds and wins in the Quarter and Semi-Finals against Inner Temple and the University of Oxford respectively. They also won Best Memorials in the UK for their written pleadings.

King’s has now reached the Championship Final of the National Rounds in seven out of the last nine years, a record unmatched by any other UK university and has one of the best track records in the Jessup Competition globally for advancing to the International Rounds. They will go on to be one of the teams representing the UK at the International Rounds in Washington, DC, from 30 March to 6 April 2024

The King’s team featured Anannya Meghani, Daphne Wong Paul Bo Jia Zhang, Rishit Harsh and Sydney Kagetsu and were coached by King’s alumni Caleb Kirton, Liam F. Holohan, Saras Sawhney and Daisy Peterson.

Now in its 65th year, the Jessup is the world's largest and most prestigious moot court competition, with participants from over 700 law schools in more than 100 countries and jurisdictions. The competition simulates a dispute between fictional countries before the International Court of Justice.