University of St. La Salle regains moot court cup in 2012 finals

By ICRC
September 7, 2012

MANILA  –  It was worth the wait for University of St. La Salle to regain the championship cup in the 2012 National Moot Court Competition on International Humanitarian Law.

USLS-Bacolod faced Ateneo de Manila Law School in the finals held today at the Supreme Court en banc session hall but they were hailed the winner of the annual competition that aims to promote knowledge and appreciation of international humanitarian law (IHL) among Philippine law students. USLS and Ateneo argued over the fictional case of Colonel Jones who was facing charges in the International Criminal Court for alleged violations of IHL, also known as the law of armed conflict.

"All the efforts that we put into the preparation became worth it when we finally got here, because the last time our school team won was five years ago. In the succeeding years, we worked hard but we didn't make it. Finally, this year we reached the (finals at the) Supreme Court and won the cup," said Nadine Abenoja of USLS, who won best mooter for the final round.

As the winning team, the USLS students will represent the Philippines in the Asia-Pacific regional finals in Hong Kong in 2013.

Competition was extremely fierce during the final round, which was judged by an esteemed panel composed of Supreme Court Associate Justice Roberto Abad, Dr. Mario Aguja of Mindanao State University-General Santos City, Philippine Judicial Academy Chancellor Adolfo Azcuna, Brigadier General Domingo Tutaan Jr., chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines-Human Rights Office, ICRC Regional Legal Advisor for Southeast Asia Christopher Harland, and De La Salle University School of Law Vice Dean Jocelyn Cruz.

"It's been a very positive competition. I think it's pretty clear that mooting, in general, suits universities in the Philippines very well," said Harland, a veteran judge of moot court competitions. “The presence of IHL in curricula, the discussion of this law in the media, and the commemoration of IHL month annually in August itself, show that this competition finds a very good home in the Philippines.”

The runner-up team from Ateneo Law School did not go emptyhanded, winning both awards for best memorials, which contain prepared written arguments from the perspective of the prosecution and of the defense.

Pauline Gairanod from the University of the Philippines College of Law school team won the Justice Ines Luciano Best Mooter Award as the highest-ranking oralist in the elimination rounds. This award, given for the first time, pays tribute to the Court of Appeals associate justice and chairperson of the IHL Committee of the Philippine Red Cross who passed away last year. The UP team also won the role-play challenge, during which teams acted in roles in a simulation aimed at showcasing practical applications of the body of law that seeks to limit, for humanitarian reasons, the effects of war.

Students from 10 law schools took part in this year's event organized by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), and the Supreme Court of the Philippines. This year's competition was hosted by De La Salle University Manila.

Other participants came from Far Eastern University-Manila, San Beda College of Law-Manila, Southwestern University, Saint Louis University, University of Batangas, University of the Cordilleras, and Cor Jesu College Law School.