"The HNC team, consisting
of Chang Yuqing, Geng Yangyang, Li Hengxue, Joshua
Kim and Zhang Wei achieved both collective success and personal growth in
the Chinese National Round for 2014 Jessup International Law Moot
Court at East China University of Political Science and Law. Forty-one
teams, with over 200 mooters, participated in this year's Jessup competition
and the HNC Team was awarded the Best
Performance (2nd), the Best Applicant Memorial (3rd), and the
Best Oralist (Chang Yuqing, 3rd).
The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court
Competition is one of the most prestigious competitions in the world, and
every year, it simulates a legal dispute between two fictional states
before the International Court of Justice. This year the topic was on the law
of the sea. With at least half the team members previously inexperienced
in mooting, and only one disciplined in the study of law, the Team had a
shaky start. However, after sleepless nights of perusing legal
documents and carefully formulating their submissions, and with warm
guidance and inspiring coaching by Professor Simon, Professor Mushkat,
Professor Feng, and Puiman Chau, the Team proved itself more than ready to
participate in the Competition. Finally, on the 18th of February, the
Team embarked on a train to Shanghai, where 41 other law schools from all over
the country also were headed with the same goal in mind.
Over the course of two days, the Team competed against four
teams; during these days, each and every member displayed confidence and
knowledge on the subject, learned to support and have faith in one
another, and most important of all, matured as a representative not only of
this institution, but also of a sovereign state, albeit fictional.
Unfortunately, the Team was a few points short of qualifying for the
tournament rounds (placing 9th instead of 8th), but at the end of the
day, the Team was awarded the Best Performance (2nd), the Best Applicant
Memorial (3rd), and the Best Oralist (Chang Yuqing, 3rd). Judges,
including representatives of Clifford Chance, one of China’s leading foreign
law firms, sought out the Team to give personal praise for their
performances and expressed surprise at not finding the Team in the finals. One thing is
clear to all of the members and the coaches: the past four months for the
2014 Jessup Team will prove a memory hard to forget.
Best Regards,
The 2014 Jessup Team"
To read more about HNC's participation in the competition in past years, click here.
