Building on their performance at the national finals in March, the TuksLaw Moot Court Society Team, consisting of oralists Ashley Makgatho (LLB II) and Mary-Ann Gettliffe (LLM), coach Gift Kgomosotho (LLM and ICLA researcher) and assistant coach Tino Kakora (LLB IV), was invited to represent South Africa at the international rounds of the 58th Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in Washington DC from 9 to 16 April 2017. 

Oralists Mary-Ann Gettliffe and Ashley Makgatho

The UP Jessup team finished in the top 16 octofinals after competing against 143 teams representing 95 countries.  In the four preliminary oral rounds (determining the top 32 teams in the world) the team competed against Luxembourg, Canada, Lithuania and USA. The TuksLaw team won all four preliminary rounds and qualified for the top 32 advanced knock-out rounds, where they were beaten by the Republic of the Philippines. In the top 16 octofinals the team lost against Jamaica who went on to argue in the final round of the competition. This year was the largest Jessup year to date, with over 600 law faculties from over 95 countries competing. Out of the 600 faculties the TuksLaw team ranked higher than the universities of Cambridge, Oxford, Columbia, Harvard, Yale and King’s College. They were also the highest ranked team in Africa.  This is an outstanding achievement by the TuksLaw team, as it has been 15 years since a team from South Africa was ranked this high in the competition and 18 years since a team from the University of Pretoria last attained this position.

This year's case was based on international environmental law, state responsibility, international cultural property/heritage law and international human rights law. 

Click on the image above to access the 2017 compromis/fictional facts of the Jessup Competition

On their return to South Africa, coach Gift Kgomosotho on behalf of the team, extended 'a special word of appreciation to Professor Christof Heyns who facilitated and supported the Jessup process from the onset'. Gift also conveyed the team's appreciation to those who contributed financially towards their trip to Washington DC, everyone who acted as guest judges and/or assisted with the preparation of the team for this competition. He concluded by stating that 'TuksLaw's participation and achievement would not have been possible without the support of the Faculty of Law and other contributors'.

The TuksLaw team flying the South African flag high - fltr Coach Gift Kgomosotho, Ashley Makgatho and Mary-Ann Gettliffe