UPES School of Law organises ADR fest ‘Madhyastham’

Students participating in the Mediation Competition at Madhyastam, UPES ADR Fest 2022

ADR or Alternative Dispute Resolution has quickly gained momentum in the Indian as well as the international legal fraternity as a method by which people settle differences while avoiding argument and dispute

The Alternative Dispute Resolution Association (ADRA) of the UPES School of Law held its annual ADR fest ‘Madhyastham’ from April 1-3. The online event saw participation from around 23 teams from law institutes across the country, such as National Law Institute University, Bhopal; National Law University, Jodhpur; Amity Law School, Noida; Government Law College, Mumbai; Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad and National Law University, Odisha, among others.

The three-day fest consisted of three competitions: The 4th National Mediation Competition, the 2nd National Negotiation Competition and the 2nd National Arbitral Award Writing Competition. The event was held in collaboration with India International ADR Association (IIADRA), Indian Institute of Arbitration and Mediation (IIAM), CMC, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), Asia Pacific Centre for Arbitration & Mediation (APCAM), Bombay Chamber, Crop Comm Legal, Supreme Court Cases Online (SCC Online), Eastern Book Company (EBC), and Katcheri.in.

Before the competitions, the ADRA at UPES organised a webinar on ‘Making of an Award and Enforcement’. Guests specialising in the field were invited to speak on the topic. The guests included the moderator of the session Mr Sameer Shah, Director of CIArb India Branch; Dr Shashwat Bajpai, Mr Arush Khanna, Ms Kshama A Loya and Mr Deepak Narayanan, all of whom are members at CIArb and leading members in various firms. The webinar was fruitful as the information given to the students came from experts. It was conducted smoothly, with students joining to listen to the speakers, both online and offline.

The ADR has quickly gained momentum in the Indian as well as the international legal fraternity as a method by which people settle differences. It is a process by which compromise or agreement is reached while avoiding argument and dispute. It is a bargaining process between parties where both seek to reach an agreement that settles a matter of mutual concern or resolves a conflict.

The ADRA, School of Law, UPES, was constituted to facilitate and promote alternative dispute resolution mechanisms and develop and enhance skills required in arbitration, mediation, and negotiation. The Association has been working diligently towards raising community and campus awareness and constantly providing a platform for alternative dispute resolution tournaments all over India.

‘Madhyastham’ is ADRA’s pioneer program to continue its commitment of promoting alternate methods of dispute resolution. The national fest seeks to help students develop their skills in dispute resolution. The pioneers of the industry too have joined UPES on this quest to promote ADR methods.
 

Below are the winners of the three competitions under ADR Fest, 2022:

1. National Negotiation Competition:

• Winners – Ishan Saxena and Arjan Ajai Singh Chonker, Jindal Global Law School
• Runner-up and Best Opening Statement – Sneha Anchalia and Siddharth Narula, Amity Law School, Noida
• Best Coordinating Team – Shivangi Agarwal and Prakrit, Maharashtra National Law University
   

2. National Mediation Competition:

• Mediator: Tara Ranade, OP Jindal Global University
• Negotiating Pair: Nilotpal Singh and Tanisha Taneja, Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai
• Runner-up Mediator: Pranav Patil, Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai
• Runner-up Negotiating Team: Bhavya Gupta and Devendra Milind Shaligram, OP Jindal Global
• Best Team: Aditi Shreya, Divyansh Morolia, Adira Chaturvedi, National Law Institute University, Bhopal
• 2nd Best Team – Mediator: Jeevesh Dubey and CC Pair: Sriram Shirke and R Dharini, Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur
• Best Opening Statement – Negotiating Team: Divyansh Morolia, Adira, National Law Institute University, Bhopal
• Best Opening Statement – Mediator: Pranav Patil, Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai

Participants/Winners of 2nd National Arbitral Award Writing Competition: Pamidi Swetha and Pushpit Singh, Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad