From March 28 to April 4, 2026, the international rounds of the 2026 Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, widely known as the “Olympics of international law,” were held in Washington, D.C., United States. Representing Peking University School of Transnational Law (STL), the team delivered an outstanding performance, advancing to the Global Top 32 and achieving the best result in the school’s history at the competition.
The team was coached by Senior Lecturer Christian Pangilinan. The student coaches were Tang Luyang, Lin Keyu, and Li Zhiyao from the Class of 2023. The team members were Luo Xiao, Peng Jiansu, and Qiu Yiran from the Class of 2024.
team members (from left to right): Coach Christian Pangilinan, Qiu Yiran, Luo Xiao, and Peng Jiansu.
The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, established in 1960, is one of the largest, oldest, and most influential international law moot court competitions in the world. Based on the procedures and legal issues of disputes between states before the International Court of Justice, the competition requires each participating team to submit written memorials for both the Applicant and the Respondent and to present oral arguments in English. Over the years, the competition has been regarded as an important platform for the teaching and practical training of international law, playing a significant role in cultivating students’ abilities in international legal research, English legal writing, oral advocacy, and teamwork.
At the 2026 international rounds, the team from Peking University School of Transnational Law distinguished itself among numerous competitors from around the world through its strong memorial-writing skills, composed oral advocacy, and excellent teamwork. During the preliminary rounds, the team competed against MGIMO University, runner-up in this year’s Russian national rounds; Universidade Federal da Bahia, champion of this year’s Brazilian national rounds; the University of Toronto of Canada; and the Universidade de São Tomé e Príncipe of São Tomé and Príncipe. The team ultimately advanced to the elimination rounds with a 23rd-place finish in the preliminary rounds and successfully secured a place in the Global Top 32.
In the memorial rankings, the STL team placed 11th globally for the Alona M. Evans Award for Top Memorials at the White & Case International Rounds. Its Respondent Memorial ranked 3rd in the world, fully demonstrating the team’s comprehensive strength in international law analysis, argument organization, and English legal writing.
In the oral rounds, team member Qiu Yiran ranked 22nd among the world’s top oralists and received the Ved P. Nanda Award for Top Oralists at the International Rounds, achieving the best result among contestants from Chinese universities this year. Team member Luo Xiao ranked 64th globally, further reflecting the outstanding performance and international competitiveness of STL students in high-intensity, fully English international law advocacy.
Peking University School of Transnational Law (STL) has long attached great importance to the cultivation of foreign-related legal professionals, encouraging students to deepen their understanding of international law rules, international dispute settlement mechanisms, and cross-jurisdictional legal practice through high-level international competitions. In recent years, the STL team has achieved remarkable results in the Jessup Moot Court Competition, winning the championship of the 23rd Chinese National Round in 2025, the first runner-up of the 24th Chinese National Round in 2026, and the second runner-up of the 21st Chinese National Round in 2023. The team’s new breakthrough in the international round marks another important achievement in the development of the School’s international moot court program, and further demonstrates its educational philosophy of “rooted in China, oriented toward the world” and its teaching feature of “valuing both theory and practice”.
In recent years, the School has continuously built a multi-level, practice-oriented training system for foreign-related legal professionals by refining its all-English common law curriculum, promoting systematic training for international moot court competitions, and hosting lecture series featuring world-leading scholars. This latest success is a concentrated reflection of the School’s long-term accumulation. The professional competence and international vision demonstrated by the team members—whether in their argumentation skills and precision in written memorials, or in their on-the-spot adaptability and cross-cultural communication during oral pleadings—all attest to the solid effectiveness of the School’s international legal education.
This historic breakthrough would not have been possible without the meticulous guidance of the team’s faculty advisors in memorial drafting, oral advocacy training, and overall competition preparation. It also embodies the tremendous efforts made by other faculty members, student coaches, and alumni of the School in mock practice, argument refinement, and competition coordination. The School’s sustained support in curriculum design, resource provision, and organizational guarantee has also laid a solid foundation for the team’s smooth preparation and participation.
Going forward, Peking University School of Transnational Law will continue to uphold its philosophy of high-level, internationalized, and practice-oriented talent cultivation. It will support students in further exploring fields such as international law, comparative law, and cross-border dispute resolution, striving to nurture more high-level foreign-related legal professionals with global vision, patriotic commitment, and professional expertise.
