Following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, Clifford Chance will continue to support the Moot Court programme at the University of Luxembourg for three more years.
The partnership, which began in 2015, combines financial contributions and various forms of coaching and support. The financial support goes towards the cost of travel to competitions in Europe and as far away as Washington, DC,. At the same time, lawyers from Clifford Chance provide the teams with valuable training ground and feedback through mock pleading sessions . Team members benefit from this exchange of ideas as Clifford Chance associates share their professional experience with the students.
Each year, the University of Luxembourg Moot Court teams participate in wide variety of competitions including the European Law Moot Court Competition, the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court, the Concours Européen des Droits de l’Homme René Cassin, The Price Media Law Moot Court, the International Criminal Court Moot Court, and the European and International Tax Moot Court. Students pursuing a Master in Law, in either their first or second year of study are eligible to apply for a place on a team.
During the 2019-2020 academic year, despite disruption caused by the COVID-19 crisis, the Luxembourg teams obtained impressive results with an eighth-place finish (out of 28 teams) at the Price Media Law Moot Court, strong oral arguments at the Philip Jessup friendly rounds, and a top-4 finish at the prestigious European Law Moot Court Competition.
“Participating in Moot Court Competitions is not only fun for the students”, says Dean of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance and Professor of Criminal Law, Katalin Ligeti, “but it also helps developing the technical and soft skills that they will need as practicing lawyers. On behalf of the students, the professors, and the coaches, we are grateful that Clifford Chance recognises the value of our Moot Court programme and has agreed to renew their support.”
Steve Jacoby, Managing Partner at Clifford Chance and Associate Lecturer at the Faculty, welcomed the continuation of the project, saying: “As a law firm, we are innovative and strive to be a thought leader and support strong ties with law faculties. Hence, we are enthusiastic about sponsoring the moot court teams giving students a valuable experience in addition to their academic pursuits.”