David Reeve, pictured left, and Michael Bishop represented Sussex at the MacKay Cup final

David and Michael triumphed against the University of Kent to emerge as the first winners of the MacKay Cup

Sussex Law students continued the School’s remarkable mooting success last month, when they emerged as the winners of the MacKay Cup. 

The prestigious cup, which is in its inaugural year, was launched by the University of Leicester in October 2014 and is supported by Canada’s Minister of Justice and Attorney General, the Honourable Peter MacKay. 

This year’s competition, which was open to all Canadian students in the UK, concluded on 27 March 2015, when the final was hosted at the Canadian High Commission in London. 

Representing Sussex were Michael Bishop and David Reeve, who faced Christine Lawton and Nick Smith from the University of Kent. 

After a closely fought battle, Sussex emerged as the winners and the first recipients of the MacKay Cup. 

Speaking after the event, David said that while the competition had been challenging, it had proved to be an “invaluable” experience. 

He said: “Taking part in the MacKay Cup was an invaluable experience and an incredible opportunity for a Canadian student such as myself to gain practical Canadian law experience while studying at Sussex. 

“The moot problem was intricate, which allowed Michael and I to explore a wide variety of creative arguments, developing our research skills and expanding our knowledge of Canadian criminal and constitutional law in the process.” 

He went on to say that it had been “an honour” to compete before the panel of judges, which included Bob Dechert, Parliamentary Secretary to Canadian Minister of Justice Peter MacKay. 

He added: “Presenting in the final in front of an audience and before six esteemed judges was intimidating but rewarding. 

“The judicial intervention was informed, challenging and thorough, and provided good insight into the challenges faced by attorneys in Canadian courts.” 

Meanwhile, Michael expressed gratitude for the support the team received from Sussex Law School throughout the competition. 

He said: “The support and encouragement of the faculty at the University of Sussex and our research team has helped to make this victory possible. 

“The efforts of everyone in facilitating and participating in countless internal, national and international moots gave us the experience and confidence needed to compete and win at this level. 

“Thanks to everyone for your effort to make this happen.” 

Professor Heather Keating, Acting Head of the School of Law, Politics and Sociology, attended the final.

Speaking after Sussex’s win, Professor Keating said: “I was fortunate enough to watch Michael and David’s winning performance at Canada House. 

“Their arguments and responses to questions were of the highest quality and the judges went out of their way to tell me how impressed they had been by the Sussex team. 

“Many congratulations to Michael and David for their success.”