About the Rusty Dalferes Memorial Fund
Rusty Dalferes was passionate about furthering the “Spirit of the Jessup.” In his 15 years as the International Rounds Judge Coordinator, he witnessed first-hand the positive impact our judges have. He would often note that there were many judges around the globe who would have been valuable members of the International Rounds benches. Further, he recognized that judges who experienced the International Rounds were better champions for the rule of law and were motivated to help promote it in their own countries. He also recognized, however, that the time and financial burden of traveling to Washington could be an insurmountable hurdle for many. In honor of these principles, and in memory of our good friend who left us too soon, the Rusty Dalferes Memorial Fund was established in 2022 to help defray travel costs for dedicated, skilled Jessup judges to attend the White & Case International Rounds.
Apply for Dalferes Funding
If you wish to be considered for selection as a 2025 Dalferes Laureate, please complete the application form. The deadline is December 9, 2024.
Donate to the Rusty Dalferes Memorial Fund
Your donation to the Rusty Dalferes Memorial Fund will honor his legacy by helping defray travel costs for dedicated, skilled Jessup judges to attend the White & Case International Rounds. By reducing financial barriers to travel, this Fund will enable volunteer judges to share their valuable knowledge and unique perspectives with Jessup competitors from around the world.
ILSA is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Your donations are tax deductible in the United States to the full extent allowable under U.S. federal law.
2024 Dalferes Laureates
Click to Expand
Manan Shishodia
Manan Shishodia is an Advocate in New Delhi, India. He holds an LL.M. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. At Penn, he studied Investment Treaty Arbitration and International Law, and was a Research Assistant to Mr. William Burke-White. Manan has been a Jessup judge for the last 4 years, including judging the advanced rounds of the US National Rounds and India National Rounds.Bruna Gonçalves
Bruna Gonçalves is a Special Doctoral Fellow at the Law Department of the European University Institute (EUI), in Florence, and an MRes. candidate at Universidade de São Paulo (USP). She graduated with an Advanced LLM in European and International Human Rights Law from Leiden University and obtained her LLB from Universidade de São Paulo. Bruna has been involved with Jessup since 2020 as a competitor and coach. In 2022 and 2023, her team was respectively in the semi-finals and quarter-finals of the White & Case International Rounds.Abena Achiaa Otuo
Abena Achiaa Otuo is a Transactional Lawyer at Templars. While studying at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology where she earned her LL.B degree, her research focused on protecting internally displaced persons under international human rights, humanitarian, and criminal law.
Abena’s involvement with the Jessup sparked her passion for international trade and cross-border transactions, leading to collaborations with organizations including the UK Department for Business and Trade and the African Continental Free Trade Area.
Since 2018, Abena has actively participated in the Jessup, including emerging as a national round champion and judging memorials and oral rounds. Currently, she serves as the National Administrator of Jessup Ghana and is leading the organization of the largest Jessup national round in Ghana’s history.
Daka Francis William
Daka Francis William is a Legal Practitioner (Advocate) in Zambia. He is currently practicing as an associate at Makebi Zulu Advocates. He is an up and coming litigator with an interest in Human Rights, Humanitarian Law, Constitutional Law and Criminal Law. Francis holds both a Master of Laws in Legal Studies from the Atlantic International University and a Master of Laws in Human Rights Law from the University of Lusaka. Additionally, Francis is an experienced Jessup Judge who has judged the national rounds for the past 5 years.Natalia Cortés
Natalia Cortés is a lawyer currently working at the Treaties Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia. She has represented Colombia before technical groups of integration mechanisms in her region, such as the Pacific Alliance and the Andean Community. Additionally, Natalia has experience working on petitions and cases before the Inter-American system of Human Rights. Her main areas of interest are human rights, gender-race matters, and criminal law. She has been a participant and a judge of the Jessup, and her Jessup experience has key to improving her knowledge and skills in Public International Law.2023 Dalferes Laureates
Click to Expand
Oluwateniola Akinbodewa
Oluwateniola Akinbodewa is a fourth year SJD candidate in International Legal Studies at Golden Gate University in the United States. She previously studied at Belgorod State University in Russia, where she graduated with honors at both the master’s and undergraduate levels. Her research is focused on the Law of Treaties and state responsibility for internationally wrongful acts. She credits the Jessup for inspiring her love for International Law.
Ramiz Husaini
Ramiz Husaini is the director of Jessup Alumni Association in Afghanistan. Currently, he is initiating a capstone project at Wake Forest University School of Law to bring legal aid in clinical legal education to Afghan law schools. He received his Bachelor of Law from Herat University in 2013 and earned an LLM in the Rule of Law for Development from Loyola University Chicago in 2022. Husaini has several years of experience with prestigious international legal and educational NGOs, including the Legal Education Support Program in Afghanistan, Afghanistan Jessup Moot Court Program, and Friends of the Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan. He is passionate about training capable lawyers and introducing legal educational institutions in Afghanistan.
Dean Ralph Sarmiento
Dean Ralph Sarmiento is an accomplished academic in the Philippines with extensive experience in Public International Law. He is the author of a Bar Reviewer on Public International Law and has served as a Bar reviewer and lecturer on International Law for many years. He was the Dean of the College of Law at the University of St. La Salle from 2010-2017 where he earned his Juris Doctor degree Magna Cum Laude in 1997 and placed 10th in the Philippine Bar Examinations. He has been closely involved with the Jessup for many years, serving as National Administrator of the Philippines, as well as a judge. He has also served as a William Fulbright Institute Fellow at Temple University, a Swiss Institute Du Fédéralisme scholar at Fribourg University, and a consultant to the ASEAN Regional Forum.
Lu Shegay
Lu Shegay is the co-founder of the Institute of Animal Law of Asia and a professor of law. She earned her LL.B degree from KIMEP University School of Law in Kazakhstan and an LL.M degree from Lewis & Clark Law School in the United States. She has been involved with Jessup Competition since 2018, first as a competitor, then as a coach, and finally as a judge at the International Rounds in 2022. She now serves as the National Administrator for the Jessup in Kazakhstan. Lu has contributed to the draft of the Animal Welfare Law of Kazakhstan, published several articles on Animal Law in Kazakhstan, Russia, and the world. She is also the author of a chapter on Animal Law in Kazakhstan in the forthcoming Global Animal Law (Oxford University Press).
Ivonei Souza Trindade
Ivonei Souza Trindade is a Brazilian lawyer with experience at the Inter-American Human Rights System. He earned his Bachelor of Laws at Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul- PUCRS in Porto Alegre, Brasil and has served as a lecturer in International Human Rights Law at A PARI MUN - Instituto de Investigación y Debate en Derecho in Peru. Additionally, he has published a number of books on International Law. A Jessup participant since 2011, Ivonei won the Prof. Vasco de Jesus Rodrigues Award in 2020 for service to the Jessup in Brazil. 