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As a result of our strong performance in the UK national rounds of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition this year and in previous years, the University of Liverpool team was selected to represent the UK as an exhibition team at the international rounds of the Jessup Competition in Washington, DC, in April 2026.
As an exhibition team, we competed in the ‘Europa League’ of the Jessup Competition, gaining first-hand experience of the international rounds through a smaller tournament held alongside the main competition and by volunteering as bailiffs. With only a few weeks between the UK national rounds, held in London, and the international rounds, preparation was intensive. We practised mooting with University of Liverpool Jessup alumni, polished arguments based on what we learned in London and incorporated a new ICJ decision released days before the trip.
A day in the life of an exhibition team
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UK Jessup teams meet Professor Dapo Akande, UK candidate for election to the ICJ and Jessup final round judge
During our week in Washington, our days involved mooting once a day and being a bailiff twice a day, sometimes back-to-back. In our spare time, we analysed the opposing team’s memorials, which were always released the day before the moot. Through the process, we encountered gaps in legal arguments, conflicting precedents and previously unseen jurisprudence from different jurisdictions. This forced us to adapt our legal pleadings to strengthen or arguments, a tactic which had been successful in London.
By participating as bailiffs, we were sometimes allowed to sit in on the judges’ deliberations, which allowed us to reflect further on our memorials from London. This gave us unique insight into the scoring of the judges and what legal arguments they felt were strong. We were also able to identify commonly asked questions, which were a part of the ‘judge memorandum’, a series of questions that the judges were directed to ask to push the knowledge of the advocates during the oral rounds. However, the judges' questions were not limited to the memorandum, and we were frequently given hypothetical questions aimed to test the teams' understanding of the practical application of international law and throw us off our argument. Through this process, we developed our understanding of the legal arguments in a way that surpassed our experience at the national rounds.
Events and culture
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During the international rounds, there were always events in the evenings and we were encouraged to participate in activities beyond the competition. Key events included the opening ceremony, the go-national ball, the final gala and a breakfast discussion with the authors of the moot problem, which gave us long-awaited insights into the problem question that we have been exploring for months. The events provided many fantastic opportunities to get to know other participants from around the world, including countries such as Egypt, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Portugal, Russia, Ukraine and many more. We also got the chance to get to know our own team better outside of mooting. We particularly bonded over the last-minute decision to create Harry Potter costumes out of tablecloths for the go-national ball! We also bonded as a team by exploring the city of Washington together.
We were incredibly lucky to have arrived in Washington at the end of March and stayed until early April, meaning we got to experience the famous cherry blossoms in full bloom. We made the most of our first few days by visiting places such as the Library of Congress, the White House, the Capitol and the United States Supreme Court. Then, after the competition had become less intense, we spent a few full days visiting places like the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, where we bumped into other competing teams. We also took the opportunity to visit the Smithsonian museums, which allowed us to enhance our understanding of the historical development of the US. We split into two groups to visit the Natural History Museum and the National Museum of African American History and Culture. We also went beyond landmarks and got to know some of the more independent shops and cafes, such as the Busboys and Poets cafe, where we had lunch as a group with our lecturer Katie and our coach Maxwell.
Our Jessup reflection
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We all agree that Jessup, with all the hard work and academic challenges involved, has been one of the highlights of both our personal and professional development. Through competing in the international rounds and attending national balls and award ceremonies, we were exposed to students from diverse legal, cultural and religious backgrounds. This fostered both global camaraderie and a genuine sense of community, also known as the ‘Jessup Family’. The friendships we made from around the world reminded us why we joined Jessup in the first place: to learn from and build lasting connections with some of the best law students in the world, all of whom share the same purpose and drive for international law.
Jessup has inspired a renewed sense of purpose and conviction to drive change through international law at a time when it matters most. After all, the Jessup’s ethos is "In the future world leaders will look at each other differently because they met here first as friends".
Get involved
Applications to join the University of Liverpool teams entering the Jessup and Helga Pedersen mooting competitions for the 2026/27 academic year are now open. Open to final-year University of Liverpool Law School students only. The deadline for applications is 10 August 2026.