The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition is the oldest, largest and most prestigious moot court competition in the field of public international law. Each year, students from over 700 universities and more than 90 countries compete against each other by simulating a legal dispute between two fictional States before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Teams have to write Memorials for both Parties, and have to make oral submissions. They are judged by actual judges of the ICJ and other international, regional and domestic courts and tribunals, attorneys, scholars and other experts in the field of international law. You can get an idea about what the Jessup is like by watching the official Jessup trailer.
The upcoming round of the Jessup, starting in September 2025 and ending in April 2026, will focus once again on current global events.
The 2026 Jessup problem will address the following questions:
Currently, we are looking for students who are interested in participating.
Participants will learn how to research legal questions and how to draft legal texts in English. They will deepen their knowledge of international law, and improve their rhetorical skills significantly. Furthermore, participants will demonstrate their skills in various trial pleadings at international law firms in Frankfurt, Vienna and Munich (all expenses covered), and will compete against other teams at the National Rounds in Erlangen (also all expenses covered) and - if the team qualifies for it - at the International Rounds in Washington D.C.
If you study law or governance and if you are interested in public international law, we strongly encourage you to apply for the Jessup 2025/2026. Your application should consist of a short letter of motivation in English, your current CV in English, your current academic transcript, your current confirmation of enrolment, and any other document which you consider to be supportive for your application. Application deadline is 15th June 2024. Please send your application in one pdf file only by e-mail to jessup@uni-passau.de.
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at jessup@uni-passau.de.
