U.S. Embassy Supports Pakistan Law Students at Jessup International Law Moot Court

U.S. Embassy Supports Pakistan Law Students at Jessup International Law Moot Court 

Islamabad, February 14, 2016 – Top students from seven law schools across Pakistan participated in the country’s first-ever National Qualifying Competition for the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition on February 14.  U.S. Embassy Islamabad’s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) and Department of Justice office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) sections sponsored the event. 

The competition’s law students hailed from: School of International Law, Islamabad; Indus College of Law, Hyderabad; International Islamic University, Islamabad; Lahore University of Management Sciences; Pakistan College of Law, Lahore; Institute of Law and Criminology, Islamabad; and Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST), Karachi.

At the closing ceremony, INL Deputy Director Chris Palmer congratulated the participants in the moot court competition and underscored INL’s and OPDAT’s longstanding support for rule of law programs.  “Moot court competitions are an excellent preparation for trying real cases,” said Palmer, recalling his own career as an attorney before becoming a diplomat.  “U.S. Embassy support has focused on training prosecutors, judges, police, and investigators as well as the construction and renovation of prosecutors’ offices across Pakistan,” Palmer added.

The Jessup Moot Court is the largest moot court program in the world, with participants from over 550 law schools in more than 80 countries.  The competition requires law students to argue the merits of a fictional case between two countries before the International Court of Justice.  The moot court case this year included issues surrounding cyber-crime.

The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs works in more than 90 countries to help countries combat crime and corruption, counter drug-related crime, improve police institutions, and promote laws and court systems that are fair and accountable.  

Source: U.S. Embassy, Islamabad.