The University of the Western Cape (UWC) Law Faculty is preparing the next generation of law graduates for life in the courtroom and is proud of the achievements of this year’s cohort of Moot Court Society members.

At the Jessup 2023 Moot Court held recently, UWC final-year LLB student Lazola Nomkala walked away with the prestigious honour of Best Oralist at the competition.

The competition is described as ‘the world's largest moot court competition, with participants from roughly 700 law schools in 100 countries and jurisdictions.

The Moot Court Competition was a simulation of a fictional dispute between countries before the International Court of Justice, the judicial organ of the United Nations. One team is allowed to participate from every eligible school. Teams prepare oral and written pleadings arguing both the applicant and respondent positions of the case.

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Lazola is the Chairperson of the UWC Moot Court Society and says the team did a sterling job: “Jessup is arguably one of the most internationally renowned competitions in international law. I think it's especially a great achievement because the teammates that were actually involved, they had to put in a lot of hard work. It was a lot of independent research, a lot of the things we don't really learn that much about at university.”

The arguments that were presented were tough topics, says Lazola: “So the one case we argued; we had to discuss for both sides, whether or not unilateral sanctions are lawful, and when they can be imposed. And we also had to argue international environmental law. So the precautionary principle of prevention and the use of self defense in armed conflicts.”

Lazola says she is very proud of her and the team’s performance and she sees this as a boost for her future legal career. “So one day I want to go into practice as an advocate. And I'd really like to one day in the far far future, practice international law. So this is a huge confidence boost. And it's also really good for the UWC Moot Court society. I think it's good to win something early on, so that for future competitions, our members also believe that they can win some trophies for the university.”