WCL Team Takes First Place in Second ICC International Mediation Competition
Paris, France (February 19, 2007)
A two-member WCL team, consisting of Sebastian Astrada and Whitney Robinson, took first place in the Second International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) International Mediation Competition in Paris, France, February 16-19, 2007.
A limited field of school teams from around the world was selected to participate in the competition, seven from the United States. Law schools from around the world included: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, India, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Eight of the twenty teams were selected for the quarter-final round, five of those from the U.S., including Fordham University School of Law, Georgetown University Law Center, Hamline University School of Law, and UC Hastings College of Law. Four teams were selected for the semi-finals: WCL, University of San Paolo (Brazil), National Law School of India University (India) and University of Ottawa (Canada) with WCL and National Law School of India University moving on to the final, WCL placing first, and University of San Paolo placing third.
“WCL’s particular expertise in International Law has allowed me to develop my career interests and experience different aspects of that field,” Astrada said. “This, combined with practical experiences like this competition, has ensured that I will be prepared for a meaningful career in law, beginning next fall at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, D.C.”
“The ICC's Mediation Competition, where students from around the world can come together and express their interest in and desire to pursue careers in alternative dispute resolution, was amazing,” Robinson said. “The time, dedication and experience displayed by Professor Dennis Sharp allowed my teammate Sebastian Astrada and I to develop skills that will help us in all aspects of our lives.”
The winning team had previous success in Atlanta last April when they reached the national championship round of the American Bar Association Representation in Mediation Competition after fending off three other regional champions in the national finals.
Team coach Dennis Sharp, a private mediator, ADR consultant and adjunct professor of law, remarked that “It was truly an honor to work with such remarkably talented and dedicated students. Ms. Robinson and Mr. Astrada are truly gifted people whom will become outstanding attorneys and future leaders in the global community.”
Inaugurated in 2006, the ICC International Mediation Competition is organized in cooperation with the American Bar Association and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators to encourage the teaching and acquisition of effective skills of representation in mediation proceedings in an increasingly cross-cultural global market. The competition consists of two parts: written advocacy and oral advocacy. Teams first submit a brief ex parte submission setting forth their mediation strategy; second, teams participate in a mediation session to test their representation skills and problem-solving approach. Each session is mediated by an experienced international commercial mediator and evaluated by a panel of judges from diverse legal backgrounds.
