97401 - SEM. GETTING READY FOR THE VIS MOOT: AN INTRODUCTION TO THE VIENNA CONVENTION AND TO INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION

Learning outcomes

In the words of the Vis Moot website: "The purpose of the Vis Moot is to foster the study of international commercial law and arbitration and provide a practical training to students for resolving international business disputes. The business community’s marked preference for resolving international commercial disputes by arbitration is the reason this method of dispute resolution was selected as the clinical tool to train law students.

There are two crucial phases in the Vis Moot to train advocacy skills: the writing of memoranda for claimant and respondent and the presentation of arguments in oral hearings held before arbitration practitioners and academics. The forensic and written exercises require determining questions of contract — flowing from a transaction relating to the sale or purchase of goods under the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and other uniform international commercial law.

The dispute is resolved in the context of an arbitration under specified Arbitration Rules. In the pairings of teams for each general round, every effort is made to have civil law schools argue against common law schools — so each may learn from approaches taken by persons trained in another legal culture. Similarly, the teams of arbitrators judging each round are from both common law and civil law backgrounds."

More info here: 

https://www.vismoot.org/

This seminar is aimed at introducing students to the topics which the Vis Moot competition deals with (international arbitration and the Vienna Convention). At the end of the seminar, students will have a basic understanding of the main subject matters and will be able to decide whether to apply to participate in the competition.

 

 

Course contents

In order to introduce the students to the topics on which the competition is focused, the seminar will be divided into 4 lectures (2 hours each), at the end of September / beginning of October 2022, dedicated to

-international arbitration

-Vienna Convention on the Sale of Goods

A more detailed schedule of classes will be available at the beginning of the semester.

Readings/Bibliography

Materials will be made available in class

Teaching methods

The seminar will have a theoretical and practical approach, in order to stimulate the discussion with and among the students.

Participation in the lessons is mandatory.

The lessons will be in English.

Assessment methods

There is no final exam, but the seminar can be passed only by active participation in class.

Office hours

See the website of Michele Angelo Lupoi