NYU School of Law has emerged as the North American Regional Champion of the 2025 IISL Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition, held this spring in Washington, D.C. The team will advance to the Global Rounds this September, where they will compete against the winners from Latin America, Europe, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific regions.

This year’s team includes Jacqueline Stark (LL.M. ’25, International Legal Studies), Denis McGrath (J.D. ’27), and Elyse Cox (J.D. ’27), with rigorous support from Kaiwen Pan (LL.M. ’25, International Legal Studies) and Anna Kohlasch (J.D. ’27). The team is coached by Yirong Sun (LL.M. ’22, IILJ Fellow), received faculty guidance from Professor Benedict Kingsbury, support from NYU Space Law Society, and invaluable help from alumni in practice sessions. Jacqueline Stark earns the title of Best Oralist.

The Lachs Moot Court is one of the most prestigious international competitions in space law, attracting participation from over 100 law schools across five global regions. The world finals, held each fall, include preliminary rounds followed by a grand final before a panel of judges from the International Court of Justice.

The North American Regional Competition is organized by Nathan Johnson, SCF Director of Special Projects.