12th NLIU-INADR International Mediation Competition 2024

This edition of the competition comprised of thirty three teams and was graced by the esteemed chief guest, Hon'ble Justice Mr. Hemant Gupta, Retd. Justice of the Supreme Court of India. The competition promotes spirited competition and camaraderie among participating institutions in addition to giving students a platform to refine their negotiation and mediation skills.

The ADRC is the oldest cell/committee with regards to alternative dispute resolutions such as mediation and negotiations in the whole of Asia. It was established in 2007 with the goal being to disseminate knowledge in these perennial fields of dispute resolutions. This competition provides an opportunity to the participants to develop the required negotiation and communication skills through training sessions conducted by renowned industry professionals like Mr. John Lag, dedicated board member of the INADR, Mr. Yash Dixit, legal associate at the chambers of Sr. Adv. S.K. Vyas and Ms. Dakshayani Saxena, advocate-on-record at the Supreme Court of India.

In order to provide students with the requisite negotiation skills, participants were given valuable insights through three workshops. The first workshop was conducted by Mr. John Lag, a graduate of the Northwestern University and the John Marshall Law School. Being a promoter of peace-making he elucidated in this session the art of purposeful mediation, using his wide wealth of knowledge ranging from civil and criminal trials to jury trials and administrative law. The second session was conducted by Mr. Lag along with Mr. Yash Dixit, a renowned alumnus of NLIU, Bhopal. With an impressive legal journey spanning corporate and litigation, he explained the role of a mediator and a counsel reinforcing the concepts of mediation elucidated by Mr. Lag in the previous session. This was followed by the last session conducted by Mrs. Dakshayani Saxena who has expertise in complex commercial disputes, including contractual breaches, intellectual property and regulatory issues. She guided the participants as to how to navigate through legal fiction, as to how to weave a story that will be beneficial for the party negotiating which will ultimately help students in winning mediation tournaments. The students now being equipped with the pre-requisite skills and knowledge will undergo three preliminary rounds followed by the semi-finals and culminating with the finals.

With collaborations with top-tier organizations and platforms across the globe, along with various luminaries in the legal profession, this year's competition offers significant prizes and coveted internship opportunities. The principal sponsors include Ex Curia International a global platform for International Dispute Resolution, fostering knowledge exchange and best practices through blogs , journals and podcasts, International Mediation Initiative(IMI) the only organization in the world that transcends local jurisdiction to develop global professional standards for mediators and advocates involved in collaborative dispute resolution and negotiation. followed by The Centre for Mediation and Conciliation (CMC) an initiative by the Bombay Chamber of Commerce, with a vision to help create harmonious business environment with enduring business relationships, MediateGuru a global social initiative dedicated to building bridges for law students worldwide, encouraging the adoption of ADR methods, and The Swiss Arbitration Association (ASA) an association with over 1000 members in Switzerland and worldwide which aims to promote best practices and developments in arbitration worldwide. It is with the support extended by Prof. (Dr.) S. Suryaprakash, Vice Chancellor, NLIU, Mr. Vivek Bakshi, Registrar, NLIU, Ms. Neha Sharma, Faculty-in charge NLIU-ADRC, Prof. (Dr.) Raka Arya and Asst. Prof. Ridhina Dikshit that the successful progression of the event is possible.

For more details, refer to the brochure here