The Philip C. Jessup International Moot Court Competition is the world’s largest, with participants from over 500 schools in more than 80 countries. The competition centers on issues of public international law and a hypothetical dispute among fictional countries before the International Court of Justice, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.
Competing teams must each produce written briefs and participate in oral arguments representing both the applicant and respondent sides of the dispute. Temple Law competes against other U.S. law schools in regional rounds. The international round, held every year in Washington, D.C., pits the dozen or so winners of the U.S. regional competitions against teams from foreign countries who have won their own national competitions.
Temple Law fields a team in the Jessup Moot Court Competition each year. Temple teams have had notable success in recent years, garnering team and individual recognition in the regional rounds and twice advancing to the international round. Selection to Temple’s Jessup Moot Court team is made by student members of the team. Team members organize their own research, writing, and oral preparations with guidance from members of Temple’s international law faculty, who serve as advisors.