Law students go international

After months of practice, a UCLA law school team will be in the
Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition after an
18-year hiatus.

The tournament, one of the most prestigious in the world, is
organized by the International Law Students Association.

Law students J.D. Henderson, Monica Duda, Richard Park and Tom
Moss will compete in Lubbock, Texas, today through Sunday for the
regionals round of the competition. The international round of the
competition will be held in March in Washington, D.C.

This year’s topic for the moot court, released in November
2003, involves the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court
and the prosecution of war crimes. The team submitted two 36-page
briefs representing both the applicant and respondent sides and
will have intense debates against other teams in front of a
three-judge panel.

Three UCLA law professors who specialize in international law
““ Richard Steinberg, Maximo Langer and Kal Raustiala ““
help coach the team in rehearsals and offer ideas and advice about
the team’s briefs.

Steinberg said the competition is a great opportunity for
students to think about public international law from a practical
perspective, allowing them to learn how to conduct research on it
and write briefs.

He said he hopes this kind of competition can change student
thinking about the international law and its arguments.

“International law is a highly specialized area. Preparing
arguments in the context of a real institution or a moot court
helps students to learn and appreciate fully how highly specialized
the style is,” Steinberg said.

A reason for the law school’s re-entry in the Jessup Moot
Court after nearly two decades of absence was to provide emphasis
on international law, which has been lacking until recent
years.

Steinberg said UCLA’s participation will help build a rich
conversational forum about international law issues among
students.

This year’s topic has raised many problems that often come
up in the news. One of the arguments on the United States’s
refusal to participate in the International Criminal Court relates
to concern about the scope of the court’s jurisdiction,
Steinberg said.

The ICC is the first permanent and treaty-based international
criminal court responsible for prosecuting charges of genocide, war
crimes and crimes against humanity. The ICC began trying cases in
2002.

Each of the team members received individual distinctions for
oral advocacy or best brief at an internal law school competition,
and were selected by the Moot Court Honors board.

“We are pretty confident that we’ll be competitive
and make a good impression of UCLA,” said Park.