UCL Laws Masters of Laws (LLM) students Vaishnavi Makne (pictured left), Ana Šulentić (pictured middle) and Abgar Harutyunyan (pictured right) represented UCL at the 23rd Oxford International IP Law Moot in Oxford from 25 to 28 March, competing in the oral rounds of this prestigious mooting competition. All the members of the team are currently studying IP law at UCL Laws.
The team was supported by moot coaches from the UCL Institute of Branding and Innovation Law (IBIL): Professor Sir Robin Jacob, April Wells (herself a graduate of the UCL IP LLM and a member of last year’s UCL Moot Team) and James Hall (also an LLM alumnus). Additional advocacy support was provided by Dheemanth Vangimalla, now a barrister of 3 New Square, who represented UCL Laws in the Oxford Moot in 2023.
The team’s preparations commenced in October 2025, with twice-weekly sessions. In the first stage of the competition, the team were required to research, prepare and submit written submissions representing the merits of the opposing sides in a fictitious legal appeal. These were filed in December. The Moot organisers used the written entries to whittle down the nearly 100 applications received from law schools from around the world. The 32 best teams were invited to Oxford for the oral rounds of the competition. The UCL team was one of only four UK-based teams to be invited to present their submissions in person. Preparation for the team in Term 2 focussed on advocacy, including practice arguing the case from both sides and responding to questions to help build confidence and fluency before the oral rounds. It also included very practical matters, such as the preparation of bundles.
On arrival in Oxford, all teams had to participate in four preliminary rounds over two days, where they made submissions as both appellant and respondent. UCL was paired with teams from University of Cambridge, University of Technology Sydney, National University of Singapore and DM Harish School of Law, Mumbai. Eight teams then progressed to the knock-out rounds. The teams argued in front of the ‘Supreme Court of Erewhon’, the apex court in a fictional common law jurisdiction. This year’s problem was an appeal from Aggarwal & Roper Television Productions v Holly-Jaye Hayes [2025] HCE 190, which raised issues on confidentiality agreements, restraint of trade and performers’ moral rights. The case raised important questions of contract construction and interpretation, alongside niche IP rights not yet explored in many jurisdictions, and falling beyond the subject matter studied on the IP course syllabi.
Unfortunately, the UCL team did not progress to the knock-out rounds. However, they joined with all the other teams to watch the Grand Final between University of New South Wales, Australia (winners) and Bucerius Law School, Germany (runners-up), which was argued before a panel comprising Lord Kitchin, formerly of the Supreme Court, Lord Justice Birss, of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, and Mr Justice Mellor, of the High Court. During the three days of the competition, they participated fully in the programme of other scheduled activities including an opening reception, the Tangentem Lecture given by Professor Jessica Silbey of Boston University, and Gala Dinner. These events provided the opportunity to meet with students and IP professionals from a wide range of jurisdictions.
UCL Laws prides itself on having one of the most diverse LLM programmes in the world, and it was particularly apt that it was represented in an international competition by an entirely international team.
Congratulations to the UCL Laws team on their achievement! Thanks too to the IBIL coaches for sharing your skills and expertise and providing such excellent support.
Find out more
- Read more about the Oxford International IP Moot.
- Find out more about other mooting opportunities at UCL Laws