Strathmore University sends Harvard School of Law back home to win moot court contest
Strathmore University School of Law has become the first African team to win the John H. Jackson Moot Court on World Trade Organization (WTO) Law, which was held in Geneva, Switzerland after shattering the hopes of Harvard Law School in the final of the competition.
The Kenyan university competed against Harvard Law School as they represented Africa for the first time at the finals.
The team, which comprises three students: Mishael Wambua, Kandalla Maleehah, and Catherine Penda, brought glory to Africa with an enviable win at the 17th edition of the global John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition, previously known as the European Law Students Association Moot Court Competition on WTO Law.
The John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition on World Trade Organization Law is a student-run moot court annual competition organized by the European Law Students’ Association (ELSA) in conjunction with the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The team beat the likes of Malawi, Nigeria, Tunisia Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Lesotho to represent the continent at the grand finale of the competition.
The university students have been awarded special traineeships, scholarships, and internships, which will enable them to gain legal knowledge at the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, the World Trade Institute and the African Union Commission.
The competition aims to build awareness of the WTO dispute settlement system as well as providing students around the world with skill and legal knowledge while nurturing its global legal capacity.
During the competition, each team is required to create and analyze a fictive case and tender their arguments both for the Complainant and the Respondent in front of a panel which consists of WTO and trade law experts.
This year’s hosted students from 90 different Law Schools across the continent.
The competition starts on September annually with the release of the case, followed by regional rounds in Europe, Africa, the Americas and the Asia Pacific.
