McCoy Pitt ’13 To Clerk for International Court of Justice

McCoy Pitt, a 2013 alumnus of the University of Virginia School of Law, will clerk at the International Court of Justice, the primary judicial branch of the United Nations, in the upcoming year.

Pitt will clerk for Judge Yuji Iwasawa S.J.D. ’97, who joined the court in June 2018.

The clerkship is through the ICJ’s Judicial Fellows Program. Pitt will receive funding through the Law School’s International Law Fellowship, a $55,000 stipend to assist with travel and living expenses while working at the court, which is located in The Hague, Netherlands.

Pitt also holds a master’s in foreign affairs from UVA, which he obtained in a dual-degree program while earning his J.D. He is currently pursuing an LL.M. at the University of Cambridge.

“The clerkship provides an unparalleled opportunity to analyze questions central to international law, to work on significant cases concerning relations between states, and to learn from world-renowned scholars serving as judges on the court,” Pitt said. “I very much look forward to working with Judge Iwasawa and assisting the court with its functions.”

Prior to his studies at Cambridge, Pitt was an associate at White & Case in Washington, D.C. As a member of the firm’s international arbitration practice group, he advised foreign sovereigns and multinational firms in complex international disputes.

He also was a legal intern with the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, and a foreign relations intern for U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson.

At UVA Law, Pitt served on the executive board of the Virginia Journal of International Law and as a member of the Phillip C. Jessup International Moot Court Team.

“The legal training I received at the Law School was exceptional,” he said. “Brilliant and engaging professors, rigorous coursework and a supportive atmosphere provided a tremendous education and outstanding preparation for the clerkship. I am immensely grateful to the Law School for its nomination to the court.”

The International Court of Justice decides international legal disputes between states and provides advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by the United Nations. The court accepts 15 participants to its fellows program each year. It looks for candidates who performed well in law school and who have studied, published or worked in international law.

In past years, UVA alumni such as Florian Knerr LL.M. ’14, Gulardi Nurbintoro LL.M. ’14, Subarkah Syafruddin LL.M. ’16, Karen Janssens LL.M. ’14, Antonios Antonopoulos LL.M. ’11, Caitlin Stapleton ’09, Chad Farrell ’07, and Annalise Nelson ’07 have joined graduates chosen from other top U.S. and European law schools.