This year, 65 universities competed in the regional rounds that were held between February and April 2023.There were two European rounds (Salzburg and Brno) and  rounds for All-Americas (Puerto Vallarta), South and West Asia (New Delhi), East Asia and Oceania (Singapore) and Africa (Accra).

The top 24 teams from the regional rounds qualified for the Final Oral Round that took place in Geneva between 13 and 17 June. This was co-hosted by the WTO and the Geneva Graduate Institute. 

After three days of competition among the best in the world, four teams qualified for the semi-finals: the University of Ottawa (Canada), the National University of Singapore (Singapore), Singapore Management University (Singapore) and the University of the Philippines College of Law (the Philippines).

The University of Ottawa and the National University of Singapore advanced to the Grand Final, which was presided over by a distinguished panel of trade law experts chaired by former Appellate Body member Peter van den Bossche. The panel also included Antony Taubman, Director of the WTO Intellectual Property, Government Procurement and Competition Division.

The winning team from the University of Ottawa was composed of Ms Jaena Kim, Mr Ian Chesney and Ms Charlotte Wong. They also won the prizes for best Complainant, Respondent and Overall Written Submissions.

The National University of Singapore emerged as runner-up. Ms Nicole Teo was awarded Best Orator in the Grand Final.

Winners of individual and team awards received prizes from the WTO as well as the opportunity to receive scholarships to study at the competition's academic supporter institutions — Georgetown University Law Center (United States), the World Trade Institute (Switzerland) and the European Public Law Organization (Greece). The law firm Van Bael and Bellis, the platinum sponsor of the competition, offered a €2,000 prize to the best African team to continue their trade studies.

The current Chair of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body, Ambassador Petter Ølberg, gave the opening speech at the Opening Ceremony while Deputy Director General Xiangchen Zhang served as the master of ceremonies at the awards. WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala met with the participants and encouraged them to continue with their involvement in international trade.

The John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition simulates a dispute under the rules of the WTO dispute settlement system, involving exchanges of written submissions and adversarial hearings before panelists on international trade law issues.

This year's case, Versania — Seizure of Vaccines in Transit from Arion, was written by Pramiti Parwani, a PhD candidate at the Law Centre for Health and Life and Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance (ACELG). The case raised issues under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), Article V of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994, the 2022 TRIPS Waiver on COVID-19 vaccines, as well as possible justifications under Article XX of the GATT 1994.

The competition is organized by the European Law Students' Association (ELSA). The WTO has been a technical supporter of the competition since its inception in 2002. The John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition is an example of the WTO's broad support for capacity building. This year, WTO staff members participated as panelists for written submissions and oral pleadings and advised ELSA on the logistical and academic aspects of running the competition.

The recording of the grand final is available here. For more information about the John H. Jackson Moot Court Competition, visit its website here.