Mediation week
ICC Mediation Week kicks off virtually
Today, ICC’s largest educational event of the year, ICC Mediation Week, kicks off digitally for its 17th edition. More than 440 students, ADR professionals, academics and volunteers from almost 60 countries will gather on a custom-built event platform for a week-long, capacity-building experience.
The global health crisis has been a challenge to most industries, but one positive outcome of the pandemic has been the development of conflict resolution processes. While today’s business landscape has become more complex, companies are becoming more aware of the effectiveness of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms (ADR) and are increasingly drawn to the efficiencies technology has made in facilitating the process.
From today through 15 February, 48 university teams from 34 countries will go head-to-head showcasing their negotiation skills in over 100 mock mediations. The virtual sessions are then judged and mediated by a roster of nearly 160 leading international ADR practitioners and academics.
However, skill-building is not just for students. While the university teams are hard at work at the virtual mediation table, practitioners and academics have the opportunity to exchange knowledge and know-how during the ninth edition of the ICC Mediation Roundtable. This year’s invite-only event is dedicated to multiparty mediation.
ICC’s International Centre for ADR, which provides a range of services that can be used separately, successively or even concurrently with other dispute resolution procedures, revealed record numbers in ICC preliminary dispute resolution figures for 2021. Last year, the Centre registered 80 new requests – comprising mediation (44 cases), expertise (25 cases), Dispute Boards (4 cases) and cases related to trade finance instruments (7 cases). A total of 77 new cases were received in 2020.
Alya Ladjimi, Manager of the ICC International Centre for ADR said: “As many businesses continue to feel the impact of the global economic downturn, parties have begun looking for new ways to resolve disputes quickly and amicably. In response, mediation has become more accessible and flexible than ever. This is why ICC’s International Commercial Mediation Competition continues to be an exciting and important platform for building the skills of rising and established mediation talent who will support and enable international trade in the 21st century.”
The Competition Final is scheduled for 15 February. Stay tuned throughout the week via ICC Mediation Twitter, Facebook and (ICC Arbitration) LinkedIn for updates and, of course, for the announcement of the 2022 champions.
Watch the event’s Opening Ceremony via YouTube.
Interested in learning more about what’s on the horizon for mediation in 2022? Here are three predictions from ICC Mediation Week’s Headline Sponsor, Clifford Chance.
