Opportunities

NYU School of Law offers to a select number of students the possibility to take part in the Vis Arbitral Moot, a moot created in 1994 with the goal of fostering the study of international commercial law and international commercial arbitration, two of the areas on which the Center focuses, through their application to a concrete problem relating to an international import/export contract. Selection of the students participating in the Vis Arbitral Moot will take place during the month of September.

INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION MOOT COMPETITION IN HONG KONG AND VIENNA

NYU will send up to two teams to the next edition of the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot which takes place each year in Hong Kong and Vienna. It is a unique competition that is designed to foster an interest in, and develop the requisite skill set for, a successful career in the fields of international commercial law and international commercial arbitration. The competition provides an unparalleled personal and professional experience; students find that their participation in the Moot is not only academically enriching, but also a delightful cross-cultural experience before and in Hong Kong and Vienna.

Goals of the Moot - The objective of the Moot is to stimulate the study of international commercial law, especially UNCITRAL legal texts, and the use of international commercial arbitration to resolve international commercial disputes. It is a clinical exercise designed to train law students through two distinct, yet equally important, phases: the writing of memoranda for Claimant and Respondent and oral advocacy in a simulated arbitral setting. Both phases are adjudicated by prominent arbitration practitioners and scholars.

Structure of the Moot - The Moot involves a dispute arising out of a contract of sale between two nationals of states parties to the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (the CISG). Additional information about the Vienna situs of the competition is available at the Pace Law School website; information about the Hong Kong situs of the competition is available at the CISG website.

Prerequisites for Participation

  • Both JDs and LLMs are eligible (1Ls will actively participate in the writing phase but are excused from the orals given the intensity of NYU’s workload in the first year; they may secure a spot on next year’s team);
  • Strong interest in, and familiarity with, international commercial arbitration
  • Basic knowledge of international arbitration, international sales law and business transactions, and/or conflict of laws (enrollment in applicable courses in the current academic year will be considered);
  • Interest in written and oral advocacy; and
  • Non-eligibility to practice law in your home jurisdiction (exceptions are made on a case-by-case basis).

Requirements of Moot Team Members

  • Extensive legal research on international arbitration, international sales law, and conflict of laws;
  • Preparation of legal memoranda on behalf of Claimant and Respondent;
  • Considerable training in oral advocacy; and
  • Oral arguments before panels of three arbitrators in either Hong Kong or Vienna.

Interested? For more information, please send an email to NYUVisMootTeam@gmail.com.