The team: L-R Avishka Jayaweera, Saheli Wikramanayake, Harish Balakrishnan (Coach), Adithya Ramanitharan, Sandun Batagoda & Harrison Mbori (Coach, not in picture)

UOC Claims first International Mooting title for Sri Lanka

Fortune certainly favoured the bold, as the team representing the Faculty of Law, University of Colombo (UoC) emerged Champions at the Global Rounds of the 19th John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition 2021. Guided throughout their journey by the Moot Court Bench (MCB), the team comprised Ms. Saheli Wikramanayake, Mr. Avishka Jayaweera, Ms. Adithya Ramanitharan and Mr. Sandun Batagoda. The team was coached by Mr. Harish Balakrishnan (Senior Partner at the MCB) and Mr. Harrison Mbori (Research Fellow Max Planck Institute, Luxembourg and Doctoral Researcher, Loyola University, Chicago)

The John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition (JHJ) is the premier International Moot Court Competition organized annually by the European Law Students’ Association (ELSA), focused on International Trade Law (ITL) and is based on the dispute settlement rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO).  Attracting over 100 teams from across the globe, as well as WTO experts from legal academia and the WTO Secretariat, the prestigious competition is held in Geneva each year but was conduct virtually this year due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. 

The phenomenal team from the UoC not only prevailed as the first Sri Lankan team to win JHJ, amongst 100 teams from the most prestigious international universities, but also claimed several awards for their written submissions and oral advocacy skills. The team was awarded the ‘Overall Best Written Submission on Behalf of the Respondent, Mr. Avishka Jayaweera bagged the award for ‘Best Oralist of the Quarter- Finals’, and Ms. Saheli Wikramanayake being duly adjudged the ‘Best Oralist of the Grand Final’. 

The preparation was a year-long journey, beginning in July 2020, where the team was selected for the MCB’s International Trade Law Program in July 2020 alongside a team from the Sri Lanka Law College. The latter was coached by Mr. Senith Abeynayake, the current Head of ITL at the MCB while assisted by Professor Rajesh Sharma. The two teams embarked on a journey of extensive preparation over the course of several months, and participated in the West and South Asian Regional Round in May 2020. It was from this point that the UoC team gradually proceeded to the Global Rounds, where they made their journey to victory.  

The role played by the MCB on this particular journey is invaluable. The MCB is Sri Lanka’s first fully integrated training platform for advocacy in Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) and ITL, in partnership with the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) of the United States Department of Commerce. They aim to drive the conversation surrounding ADR and ITL in Sri Lanka, whilst also expanding their own horizons and establishing itself as the foremost advocate of reforming local and international Dispute Resolution Systems. This aim includes providing targeted training to prospective mooters from legal education institutes across the island, so that they may, in the future, contribute to the reformation of Dispute Resolution in Sri Lanka.

In addition to the individuals and institutions mentioned above, the UoC team extends its gratitude to Prof. Naazima Kamardeen, Prof. Indira Nanayakkara and Dr. Sampath Punchihewa of the Faculty of Law, University of Colombo, for facilitating mooting within the Faculty and Shaya Tavaf and Melinda Zanner of the CLDP for their constant support. The team also thanks Purity Maritim, Christian Vidal-Leon, Mishael Wambua, Emily Wakesho, Akinyi Agutu and Andres Esteban for assisting the team in the run-up to the competition.  Special thanks are due to Prof. Rajesh Sharma for supporting both teams that represented Sri Lanka at JHJ.

This victory stands as a strong testament of the talent, commitment and potential of Sri Lankan students and reflects what can be achieved with the due guidance and resources. It also strongly reflects the excellent foundation of tertiary education and skill instilled by our state universities such as the UoC, and the team ought to be commended for the glory bought to Sri Lanka at such a prestigious global tournament. Their perseverance and resilience amidst this pandemic is a true source of inspiration. 

Here’s what the winning team had to say – 

• “It felt surreal when we won the moot competition and I was extremely happy that we managed to leave Sri Lanka’s mark in the international moot court arena. From the intensive 11 months experience, what I gathered is that with the right people and the right work it’s possible to do anything even if you come from the global South. The sky’s the limit” – Sandun Batagoda

• “The competition was very challenging, but also so rewarding. I was lucky to work with some amazing people, including my team and all the people who put so much time and effort into helping us out. I’ll carry the memories I’ve made and the lessons I’ve learnt forever” – Saheli Wikramanayake
• “Studying law can be tiring and at times be boring, but mooting will replace it with a lot of fun and excitement” – Adithya Ramanitharan                                                    
• “It has been a crazy journey but I wouldn’t change a minute of it” – Avishka Jayaweera