Every year the International Academy of Dispute Resolution (“INADR”) sponsors an international law school mediation tournament. The tournament typically takes place during the spring semester in Chicago, IL. Participation in these tournaments continues to increase every year, especially the participation of international schools. Law schools from Canada, Great Britain, and Germany regularly attend. The tournament provides law students with the opportunity to learn about various forms and techniques used in mediation, as well as the opportunity to practice their mediation skills in friendly competition with other students from around the world.
Teams of three students each go through three preliminary rounds serving as mediators, as well as advocates and clients. Mediators work in pairs, with the co-mediators being from different schools. This encourages students to recognize that mediation is about working together to reach a solution, rather than competing at every turn. Mediators are judged on their ability to work together with their co-mediator in addition to their listening skills, their ability to help advocates and clients see the strengths and weaknesses of their cases, their ability to stay positive and professional, and their ability to help guide the parties to a resolution of the dispute that brought them to mediation. The top four teams in each category proceed to the final round and awards are given for both team and individual performances. Please click here for more information.
What you need to know
- INADR is an upper-year competition
- INADR competition alternates between Chicago and other international locations. Schools from all over the world attend INADR, including USA, India, and Poland
- It is recommended to participate in the internal Dentons Negotiation Cup in the Fall to be considered for INADR
- A significant number of coaching hours in the months, and weeks leading up to the competition, are required
Teams
- The team is usually comprised of two teams of three students
Credits/Courses
- Team members receive two graded credits for their participation, which will be applied in the Winter term
- Team members are NOT required to enroll in the Appellate Advocacy Workshop