Congratulations Again, Dispute Resolution Board and Vis Team
When I last updated the campus, Stetson’s Dispute Resolution Board, through its William C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot team, had two extraordinary successes – first, by sweeping the awards in the Florida Bar International Law Section’s Richard DeWitt Memorial Vis Pre-Moot in Miami, and second by advancing to the finals and finishing second in a field of forty teams from around the world) at the prestigious CAM-CCBC São Paulo Pre-moot.
Since the last update, we actually learned that we had won an additional award at the CAM-CCBC São Paulo Pre-moot: Taylor Simonds, who won Best Oralist at the Miami pre-moot, also won Best Oralist at the CAM-CCBC São Paulo Pre-moot.
But the excellent news does not stop there. Simply stated, the team has now won one of the most prestigious, invitation-only pre-moots in the world: the 15th Annual Permanent Court of Arbitration Pre-Moot in the Hague. We also won two Best Oralist awards: Mario Makram received Best Oralist, and Taylor Simonds received Third Best Oralist.
Let me pause here for a brief announcement: If you are a 1L or 2L and think you might be interested in learning more about how to be part of Stetson’s next great Vis team, make sure to make room in your Fall 2022 schedule for the International Sales Law and Arbitration course, successful completion of which is required for all students who want to be considered for this team.
Now, returning to the wonderful news: Traditionally, this invitation-only competition takes place at the PCA headquarters in the Peace Palace in the Hague. This competition is very selective: every school must prepare an expression of interest, and only a few are chosen to compete. This year, only 8 universities were chosen to compete, and Stetson was the only team representing the United States. Over the years, over 70 different universities from more than 40 countries across the globe have participated in this competition.
This year, the other universities chosen to compete were as follows:
- – Leiden University, Netherlands
- – Royal University for Women, Bahrain
- – The Nova School of Law, Portugal
- – University of Nairobi, Kenya
- – University of Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- – University of Belgrade, Serbia
- – University of Muenster, Germany
Stetson placed first; University of Muenster placed second; University of Zenica placed third.
Because this pre-moot is so incredibly prestigious, the arbitrators who judge the competition are also of the very highest caliber. Most notably, our students had the opportunity to plead in front of Ingeborg Schwenzer. Ingeborg Schwenzer is Dean of the Swiss International Law School and Professor emerita of Private Law at the University of Basel, Switzerland. She has published numerous books and more than 200 articles in the fields of law of obligations (contracts, tort law and unjust enrichment, sales law both domestic and international), commercial arbitration as well as family law. In particular, she is the editor and main contributor of the world’s leading Commentary on the Convention on the International Sale of Goods (CISG) (4th edition, Oxford, OUP: 2016) and its German, Spanish, Portuguese and Turkish counterparts. From 2011 to 2018 Ingeborg Schwenzer has been the chair of the CISG Advisory Council. She is also active in all areas of legal practice. In particular, she regularly acts as arbitrator, counsel and legal expert in international disputes. She is LITERALLY the queen of the CISG worldwide.
Congratulations to all of our Vis team members — student coach Joseph Kim and team members Sierra Demartino, Pedro Jimenez Lopez, Mario Makram, and Taylor Simonds for a third outstanding performance. And a very special thanks to Coach (and Stetson Vis alumnus) Matt Ceriale, and most of all, Professors Vaughan and Morrissey, who have invested a tremendous amount of care, time, and mentoring in these students’ success. Great job, and we can’t wait to hear how the final chapter in Vienna goes!