Campbell Law competitors in 17th Vis East Moot make history

The 17th Vis East Moot is making history by being held virtually from March 22-29, 2020, much like the American Bar Association’s annual national Client Counseling Competition — the only two moot court or trial advocacy competitions that have not been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. In the past, Campbell Law has sent teams to compete in Hong Kong, where the Vis East Moot has historically been held.

Campbell Law’s competitors are second-year law students Rebecca Skahen and Miller Capps. Professor Raluca Papadima is the team’s coach. She wrote the following in an email to the law school’s on Monday morning: “As of late last night, the online version of the Willem Vis Hong Kong moot is underway. Our oralists, Rebecca Skahen and Miller Capps, had their first round and they were AMAZING!”

Papadima explained there are three more rounds during the next three days. On Thursday, the team will find out if it made it into the elimination rounds. If the team moves on, there will be more rounds on Friday and Saturday, prior to the closing of the moot on Sunday, when the awards will be announced.

“The schedule is very challenging, given the time difference between us and Asia, but we are doing our best to survive on very little sleep,” she added. “Please wish the team luck and follow their progress on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CampbellVisTeam.”

Following is the official announcement from the competition’s website:

“Those of you who already participate in the Hong Kong or in Vienna Vis know how important the competition is to the practical education of the students and to the promotion of the CISG around the world.  And the VVE is the first of its kind – we’re turning the coronavirus cloud’s silver lining to create a new, 21st century event.

“The arbitration world has already caught on to the great networking, profile-raising and recruitment opportunities of the Vis, but some in the CISG community  are not always able to participate. With the Vis East Moot going virtual this is a terrific opportunity for everyone to get involved – and without the expense and time commitment of travel to Asia.”

This year’s Problem and Clarifications can be found at  the 17th Vis East Moot website. Click here to link to the 17th Vis East Moot page.