ILSA is pleased to release the 2027 Official Rules of the Jessup Competition.

The following is a summary of two major changes in the 2027 Official Rules. There are other changes, however, and Teams are advised to read the Official Rules completely and carefully. Please do not rely merely on familiarity with last year’s Rules or on this summary.

International Rounds: New “Advanced Rounds!” (Rule 9.6 et seq.)

With the continuing growth of the International Rounds, we are replacing the Thursday Run-Off Rounds and Round of 32 with a new round-robin format, whereby all of the top one-third of Teams from the Preliminary Rounds will moot twice on Thursday, once as Applicant and once as Respondent. On Thursday evening, we will then announce the top 16 teams advancing to the Friday-morning Octofinal Rounds, based upon Teams’ combined records in the Preliminary and Advanced Rounds (six matches).

It is our hope that this will allow Teams a greater opportunity to shine in the later Rounds, by making advancement less dependent upon the outcome of a coin toss.

Clarification of certain Memorials formatting rules (Rule 5.5 and 5.17).

In response to numerous questions from Teams, we have again tried to clarify the exception for “abbreviations in common use.” The language is now “in common use in non-legal written English.” To be clear, we’re talking about abbreviations like “etc.,” “e.g.,” and similar ones. This is not intended to include jargon and terminology in “common use” among legal practitioners – no matter how “common” it might be. (“CIL” and “PIL” are two of the most frequent offenders.)

Furthermore, the Rules now expressly state that the “Questions Presented” section is no longer permitted.