In 2022, six Harvard Law School students were selected as Cravath International Fellows. During Winter Term, they pursued independent clinical placements or research projects with an international, transnational, or comparative law focus, exploring legal frameworks and practices in six countries. Juliette Brezin ’23, Mohammed Jagana ’22, and Catherine Cole ’22 (pictured above, left to right) share their stories.
Read more on Harvard Law Today
Photo: Lorin Granger
Seated, L to R: Marta Canneri ’22, Katherine Shen ’22, Hannah Sweeney ‘24
Standing, L to R: Nanami Hirata ’23, Shayan Khan LL.M. ’22, Stephanie Gullo ‘22
Harvard Law School’s team has won the national round of the 2021-2022 Philip C. Jessup International Moot Court Competition and will advance to the international rounds, to be held from March 24 through April 10. The Harvard Law team, comprised of J.D. students Marta Canneri ’22, Katherine Shen ’22, Stephanie Gullo ’22, Nanami Hirata ’23 and Hannah Sweeney ’24, and coached by LL.M. student Shayan Khan LL.M. ’22, competed against teams representing 84 other U.S. law schools on a case involving disinformation and the freedom of expression, botnet takedowns, the secession of part of a nation’s territory, and foreign election interference. The memorials (written briefs) submitted by the Harvard team were ranked third out of the 85 submissions.
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Photo: Lorin Granger
Kit Lea Cheang ’23 is working remotely this summer from her home in Singapore
I am spending this summer as a 2021 Chayes International Public Service Fellow, working at the Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) office of TRIAL International, an NGO headquartered in Geneva that fights impunity for international crimes and supports victims in their quest for justice. TRIAL International’s office in BiH promotes transitional justice in BiH by improving access to justice and redress for survivors of grave crimes, including sexual violence survivors, families of missing persons, and former camp detainees.
So far, I have been working on a comparative legal research project on how states have issued public apologies to victims of war crimes, systemic discrimination, violence, and other acts of wrongdoing. This will contribute to TRIAL International’s overall advocacy and strategic litigation efforts to implement the UN Committee Against Torture’s landmark 2019 decision condemning Bosnian authorities for their failure to fulfil obligations towards a sexual violence survivor.
Learning from the TRIAL International BiH team’s work with survivors of sexual violence has brought the knowledge I gained from taking Public International Law in my 1L spring semester to life. I have gotten a glimpse into how complex the work of transitional justice can be. Although the Bosnian War ended more than 25 years ago, the work of seeking reparations and redress for sexual violence survivors from the war is far from complete (according to United Nations estimates, there are between 20,000 and 50,000 survivors of rape, which was used as a tool of genocide, from the war). I have also seen how a combination of resilience, heartfelt dedication, sensitivity to survivors’ needs and perspectives, and willingness to work empathetically with all relevant parties including prosecutors’ offices, courts, and the government has allowed the TRIAL team to achieve incremental steps of progress for survivors. For instance, for the first time, a survivor of wartime rape received compensation from her perpetrator in March 2020. TRIAL International continues to work on improving the practice of awarding compensation and other reparations to survivors.
It has also been refreshing to work with an NGO in the field of human rights for the first time, and to learn from how an NGO mobilizes for a cause they believe deeply in. Before law school, I worked with Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on issues of international security and nuclear weapons. It has been fascinating to examine and reflect on international law and international relations from the human rights angle, and to grapple with how international and domestic institutions both enable and obstruct the pursuit of justice for survivors of human rights violations.
The 2021 Cravath International Fellows, clockwise from top left: Leslie Liu ’21,
Sean Quirk JD/MPP ’21, Kiah Duggins ’21, Amre Metwally ’22, Brooke Davies ’21,
Andie Forsee ’21, and Mira Naseer ’22.
In many different ways, even during a pandemic, Harvard Law School students continue to engage with international, comparative, and foreign law. Seven HLS students were recently named Cravath International Fellows in recognition of the significant, internationally-focused independent clinical or research/writing projects they undertook during Winter Term in January.
The Cravath International Fellowships were created in 2007 by a group of partners and HLS alumni at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, led by Sam Butler ’54 and the late Robert Joffe ’67.
Learn more about their work on Harvard Law Today, and read Mira Naseer’s post on the HLS Clinical and Pro Bono Programs blog.
(Left to right: 2020 Chayes Fellows Ata Nalbantoglu ’22. Mira Naseer ’22 and Jung Hyun (Monica) Lee ’22. Photo credit: Lorin Granger.)
In 2020, 24 Harvard Law School students pursued summer work as Chayes International Public Service Fellows. The program, established in 2001 and dedicated to the memory of HLS Professor Abram Chayes ’49, allows HLS students to spend eight weeks working with governmental or nongovernmental organizations concerned with issues of an international scope or relevant to countries in transition.
Although the COVID-19 pandemic made it necessary for all but one of the fellows to work remotely, they undertook placements with organizations based in 12 countries. Several students engaged in direct client service, addressing the many challenges facing refugees, asylum seekers and marginalized populations in countries around the world. Others focused on legal research and writing, enhancing their skills and exploring issues that broadened their exposure to international, comparative and foreign law.
In this profile on Harvard Law Today, three of the 2020 Chayes Fellows share their experiences.