The much-anticipated Mediation Championship India premiers this weekend at Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar. This globally unique platform, conceptualised and produced by The PACT, will convene the best mediation & negotiation talent from across India in a league of mediation champions. MCI will feature India’s finest talent – nearly two dozen negotiation teams and a dozen mediators – who have won accolades at 28+ mediation competitions in India and abroad.
Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas and Co. are the headline sponsors at MCI 2023. Having staunchly supported The PACT’s efforts since 2017 to make the future generation of lawyers mediation-ready, Tejas Karia, Partner and Head of Arbitration at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas , says, “I have been fortunate to be connected with The PACT since 2017 when Nisshant and Jonathan first reached out to lead a mediation and arbitration advocacy course. Since then, I have enjoyed to be part of The PACT’s journey of commitment and dedication towards training and educating law students with dispute resolution advocacy skills. The role of a mediation lawyer is extremely important to ensure a successful mediation. Mediation practice demands a different set of skills, in comparison to arbitration or litigation. I am happy to support The PACT at MCI 2023 and we wish India’s next-generation mediation talent the very best of luck.”
In its first major venture into the mediation world, GNLU has opened up its premises to convene India’s finest gathering of mediation professionals and aspirants. Prof. (Dr.) S. Shanthakumar, Director and Vice-Chancellor at GNLU, says, “It is my pleasure to have GNLU Gandhinagar host India’s finest mediation gathering. The PACT pitched an ambitious idea to me a few months ago, and I am happy to see it come to life. My team of students and faculty are eager to welcome the youth and experience of India’s mediation community on our campus. It is extra special to us as Nisshant Laroia is our alumnus and we are proud of the fact that he took this road less travelled to pursue a career in Mediation.”
“It’s already been a competition of many firsts — an email negotiation round, a pre-mediation test, a ranking and league system, live and transparent scoring. There is so much more to follow, especially in terms of the roleplay that will depict a real-time timeline of a mediation challenge, the opportunity for mediation advocates to appoint a neutral, the audience voting for the Finale and much more,” says Nisshant Laroia, Mediator and Founder, The PACT.
In an effort to build a bond between the experienced and the enthusiasts in India’s mediation community, The PACT has collaborated with senior advocate and mediator, Sriram Panchu, to launch the National !mPACT Awards in Mediation, which will premiere on September 10.
The PACT is also collaborating with Maadhyam: International Council for Conflict Resolution, New Delhi, to constitute the National Award for excelling ADR / Mediation cells on campus, which will be launched on September 10.
As part of the mediation festivities, The PACT is launching The Senior Advocate Ratan K Singh Scholarship for ADR Excellence to the top mediation talent in the country at MCI 2023.
CAMP Arbitration and Mediation Practice, India, and Edwards Mediation Academy, USA, have collaborated with The PACT to award the National Mediation Champions at MCI 2023 a full scholarship on their popular 40-hour Mediator Training Programme. In recognition for CAMP’s pursuit to champion mediation advocacy, the organisers have also initiated ‘The Laila Ollapally Award for Meritorious Performance as a Mediation Advocate’, which will include a cash prize for the National Mediation Champions – Counsels.
SamvÄd: Partners, led by Ekta Bahl, has taken the responsibility to draft the conflic t simulations that will test the knowledge and skills of India’s top mediation talent. Ekta Bahl will also join The PACT team for a masterclass in mediation advocacy prior to the competition.
Mediate.com, the world’s oldest and resourceful database for mediators and mediation literature, have joined The PACT as Chief Knowledge Partners, offering a huge range of scholarships to the champions of MCI 2023. Mediators Chitra Narayan, Gracious Timothy and Nandini Gore have also generously awarded their books to the top ranked champions at MCI 2023. Courtesy of an anonymous sponsor, all champions participating at MCI 2023 will also be gifted a copy of ‘Mediation Simplified’ — India’s only interactive workbook on Mediation. SAMA and Indian Dispute Resolution Centre (IDRC) are also supporting MCI 2023 as Continued Learning Partners, offering internships for meritorious performances.
Legal League Consulting, India’s global legal management consultants, are collaborating with The PACT as Management Partners. Led by their CEO and Mediator, Nipun K Bhatiaa, LLC is assisting the organisers as PR strategists. They are also providing a masterclass session to all the participants and a month long mentorship to the top 2 teams in branding and …….Further, Asian School of Cyber Laws (ASCL) are also collaborating with The PACT as Mediation Education Sponsors, with its COO and Mediator, Gokul Narayan, joining the panel of assessors and trainers for Mediation Championship India. ASCL and The PACT are also set to launch their online certificate course in Mediation at the inaugural edition of MCI.
The USP of the format is the quality of the participants — there are no first timers on this stage, only fierce competitors who have either won an award or missed their moment of glory by a whisker. “It’s not about winning, it’s about developing a win-win mentality. Besides the contest, we have worked hard to create spaces for immersive learning and collective brainstorming, in addition to plenty of opportunities for networking and reflection. The young will take back wisdom from the experienced, while the professionals will hopefully be inspired by a new technique or approach used by Generation Alpha. It’s such a privilege putting together this fantastic festival of sorts, and we are grateful to everyone who has played their part in bringing this idea to life. We are just getting started,” says Jonathan Rodrigues, Mediator and Founder, The PACT.
MCI 2023 will feature Retd. Justice Kurian Joseph, Former Judge of the Supreme Court of India; Retd. Justice Gita Mittal, Former Chief Justice of J&K High Court; Sriram Panchu, Senior Advocate and Mediator; Ratan K Singh; Tejas Karia, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas; Laila Ollapally, Mediator & Founder, CAMP Bangalore; Sadhana Ramachandran, Mediator and Co-Founder, Maadhyam; Prashant Popat, Senior Partner, ALMT, Ekta Bahl, Partner, Samvad: Partners, Ganesh Chandru, Partner, Dua Associates, Mediation & ADR Counsel; Suadat Kirmani, Partner, Indus Law; Kamala Naganand, Mediator and Managing Partner, Aarna Law; Chitra Narayan, Mediator and Co-founder, FCDR; A J Jawad, Mediator and Trainer; Amit Mishra Kumar, Advocate; Rukmani Menon, Mediator and Executive Director, CAMP; Radhika Shapoorjee, Mediator and Cofounder, Mediation Mantras; Juieen Nag, Mediator and Cofounder, Riverus; Tanima Tandon, Mediator and Principal Associate, Khaitan & Co.; Ritvik Lukose, Mediator and Founder, Vahura; and many other eminent mediation professionals. MCI 2023 being hosted in Gujarat will also present a unique opportunity to posthumously honour a son of the soil and senior mediator, Late Niranjan J Bhatt, who passed away earlier this year.
