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ABOUT
WHO WAS JOHN H. JACKSON?

John Howard Jackson (April 6, 1932 – November 7, 2015) was an American legal scholar and educator, expert in international trade law.

John H. Jackson was born in Kansas City, Missouri to Howard Clifford and Lucile (Deischer) Jackson. He graduated from Hickman High School in Columbia, Missouri, in 1950. In 1954 he obtained an A.B. from Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University. Then, he served two years in the US Army stationed in Japan. In 1959, he earned his LL.B. from the University of Michigan Law School.

After two years of private law practice at the large corporate law firm Foley, Sammond & Lardner in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he became a professor at the University of California at Berkeley Law School (1961–1966), the University of Michigan Law School in Ann Arbor (1966–1997), and Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. (1998–2014). In 1968–1969 John H. Jackson was a visiting professor at the University of Delhi, India and in 1975–1976 at the University of Brussels, Belgium.

In 1973–1974 he took a leave and served as General Counsel to the U.S. Office of the Trade Representative and worked on the Trade Act of 1974. In 1988–1989 he was Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Michigan.

He was a Vice President of the American Society of International Law (1990–1992) and organised its International Economic Law Group.

He was regarded as one of the chief architects of the World Trade Organization and its dispute settlement procedure.

He was the director of the Institute of International Economic Law, Georgetown University Law Center and editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Economic Law.

via Wikipedia

To honour his contributions to the international trading system, we named our Competition after him.

CHARACTERISTICS
  • WTO DISPUTE SETTLEMENT SYSTEM

     

     

    The Competition is a simulated hearing of the WTO dispute settlement system. The teams prepare and analyse a fictive case and present their arguments both for the Complainant and the Respondent in front of a Panel which consists of WTO and trade law experts.

  • FOR STUDENTS

     

     

    Teams consisting of 2 – 4 law students are eligible to participate.

  • AIM

     

     

    The aim is to enhance knowledge of international trade law and WTO dispute settlement procedures as well as to enhance the capacity for meaningful engagement in multilateral trade in the long term.

PROCEDURAL STEPS
  • WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS

     

    The teams prepare written submissions for the complainant and respondent of a fictitious case written by a WTO professional.

  • REGIONAL ROUNDS

    Regional Rounds are usually composed of 6 elimination rounds. They are taking place all over the world: an All-American Round, two Asia-Pacific Rounds, two European Rounds and an African Round.

  • FINAL ORAL ROUND

     

    The best teams from all over the world will be qualified to participate in the Final Oral Round, which takes place in Geneva, Switzerland.

SCOPE
  • INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT

     

    Participants have the opportunity to make contacts with people from all around the world. The Competition is global and the participants usually come from more than 35 different countries.

  • NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

     

    The competition provides you with a unique chance to meet face to face top trade law experts and WTO professionals.

  • LANGUAGE

     

    The Competition is held entirely in English.

ACADEMIC VALUE
  • SKILLS TRAINING

     

    Participating in the competition will provide you with professional experience already during your studies. This is of extreme importance upon entering professional life. Participants have a higher chance to become leading trade lawyers than their peers.

  • FUTURE CAREER

     

    This competition opens doors to a future career in trade law. Our sponsors are among the top law firms in the world.

  • WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION

    The competition receives technical support from the WTO. 

HISTORY

The John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition (formerly the ELSA Moot Court Competition) was first organised in 2002 and consisted of a Written Round, 5 National Rounds and a Final Oral Round in Geneva.

Since then, the John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition has grown immensly. Recently celebrating 20 years, the competition welcomes hundreds of participants from all over the world to participate in a Written Round and one out of six Regional Rounds to compete for a spot in the Final Oral Round which takes place at the World Trade Organization in Geneva every year.

SEE MORE
  • FORMER EDITIONS

    Find out more about the previous editions, including previous cases, bench memorandums and best written submissions.

  • 15 YEARS OF THE ELSA MOOT COURT

    Read 15 Years of ELSA Moot Court Competition on WTO Law and learn more about the history of the John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition.