Willem C Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot 2007-08

Murdoch Law School's Willem C Vis Moot team have recently returned from the oral rounds of the competition in Vienna. The team won an award for Best Memorandum for the Respondent, and achieved an impressive final ranking of 19th of 203 teams worldwide. The team proceeded to the Finals, where they were defeated in the first elimination round by the team from Buccerius University, Germany.

Photo: L-R: Craig Williams, Samantha D'Silva, Kristian Maley, Vanja Tekic, Andrew Kirk, Gabriël Moens and assistant coach, Sam Luttrell at the awards dinner.

The team's work began with the release of the problem in October 2007. Since that time, the team have undertaken a rigorous and intensive advocacy training programme under the direction and mentorship of their Dean and coach, Professor Gabriël Moens. Their training also involved the significant input of numerous members of the Perth legal profession and judiciary who gave up their time to judge over thirty training moots. The team wish to express their sincere gratitude to all who assisted.

The team was comprised of speakers Andrew Kirk (who achieved an impressive average of 44.8 out of a maximum of 50) and Kristian Maley (whose average mark was 44.6), and researchers Craig Williams, Samantha D'Silva, and Vanja Tekic. Prior to the moot in Vienna, the team reached the Semi-Finals of the increasingly popular Pre-moot competition held in Leuven, Belgium, where they mooted against Harvard University. The team also took part in training hearings with the National University of Singapore, and the Free University of Berlin.