NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 22, 2012
CONTACT: Kent Love
517/432-6848, kent.love@law.msu.edu
MSU Law Jessup Team Headed to World Championship Rounds
East Lansing, MI — Michigan State University College of Law is headed to the world championship rounds of the 2012 Phillip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. The Law College’s Jessup Team is among 125 that will compete at the international law event in Washington, D.C., on March 25–31, 2012.
MSU Law’s 2011–12 Jessup Team includes 3Ls Marc Rehmann and Poonam Patel and 2Ls Maria Knirk, Ben Juvinall, and Ashley Wangberg. The students advanced to the world championship after defeating teams from five other U.S. law schools at the Rocky Mountain Regional competition in early February. Two of the 23 teams that competed in the regional event will advance to the international rounds.
The Jessup Team is coached by Professor Bruce W. Bean, director of the LL.M. for Foreign-Educated Lawyers Program; Janet Ann Hedin, adjunct professor and reference librarian; and Veronica Valentine McNally, adjunct professor and associate director of MSU Law’s trial advocacy programs. Teaching assistant Lindsay Pohlman also provided support.
“Much of our success this year is due to the extraordinary efforts of Professor McNally,” said Professor Bean. “The MSU Law team is very strong, and we look forward to competing against the best in the world this spring in Washington.”
The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, which is now in its 53rd year, involves a hypothetical dispute between countries before the International Court of Justice, the judicial arm of the United Nations. This year’s problem raised issues regarding targeted killing with remotely piloted vehicles, collateral civilian damage, international bribery, and a ban on wearing religious face coverings. Teams from more than 500 law schools and 80 countries compete in the competition each year, making it the world’s largest event of its type. White & Case has partnered with the International Law Students Association (ILSA) to become the official sponsor of the competition’s White & Case International Rounds.
Michigan State University College of Law, a leading institution of legal education with a long history of educating practice-ready attorneys, prepares future lawyers to use ethics, ambition, and intellect to solve the world’s problems. As one of only a few private law schools affiliated with a major research university, MSU Law offers comprehensive interdisciplinary opportunities combined with a personalized legal education. After 100 years as a private and independent institution, the affiliation with MSU has put the Law College on an upward trajectory of national and international reputation and reach. MSU Law professors are gifted teachers and distinguished scholars, its curriculum is rigorous and challenging, and its facility is equipped with the latest resources—all affirming MSU Law’s commitment to educating 21st-century lawyers.
###
320 Law College Building
East Lansing, MI 48824
www.law.msu.edu
(left to right) Lindsay Pohlman, 3L Marc Rehmann, 3L Poonam Patel, 2L Ashley Wangberg, 2L Maria Knirk, and 2L Ben Juvinall
