Delos has provided an initial collection of the resources available on holding remote or virtual arbitration and mediation hearings, organised into
guidance and checklists,
protocols,
model procedural orders,
webinar recordings and
other resources.
This collection is being maintained up-to-date by ArbitralWomen member Mihaela Apostol and Delos President Hafez Virjee.
By way of background, the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the first quarter of 2020 has posed increasing challenges to the careful, advanced planning of in-person hearings in international arbitrations. Potential solutions have included reducing the number of participants, moving the hearing to another location, postponing it, or moving part or all of it online. These online hearings, typically referred to as ‘virtual’ or ‘remote’ hearings, have in turn created new challenges for practitioners due to lack of familiarity and experience with the available platforms. Part of the experiential deficit has been addressed through the shift of international arbitration events to the online space, with the substantial increase of webinars. Another trend has been the sharing of know-how online, ranging from written guidance and model procedural orders to panel discussions and practical webinars. While these trends are a healthy display of the international arbitration community’s cohesiveness and adaptability, they have also created some confusion due to their sheer volume. Delos has therefore compiled and categorised the relevant resources into a simple table available on its website, at https://delosdr.org/index.php/2020/05/12/resources-on-virtual-hearings/.
Submitted by Mihaela Apostol, ArbitralWomen member, and Hafez Virjee, Delos President
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Policy on Funding Moot Competition Teams
Each year ArbitralWomen provides support to a number of Teams who participate in dispute resolution competitions, such as the Vis or Vis East International Arbitration Moot by covering their registration fee.
Following are the conditions for the funding:
Any qualified team requesting financial assistance must complete an application form providing details of the teams, resources, and the reason for the requested assistance. The application form is available on the website, and may be amended from time to time as the Board deems appropriate.
The Board, through its Moot Bursary Committee, shall consider all applications received and decide which team(s) shall be supported through payment of its(their) registration fee to compete. In general, teams selected will be from different countries. Applications filed after the deadline will be disregarded.
Criteria of selection:
The team must reflect ArbitralWomen's mission of promoting the participation of women in dispute resolution, i.e. at least half of the members of a team must be women.
The team must demonstrate the need for financial assistance.
Priority will be given to teams:
who have not previously participated, and whose school has not previously participated;
who have no support from their universities or no coach;
who come from developing countries or jurisdictions which, in the sole discretion of the Board, are in the greatest need of support for the advancement of women in dispute resolution;
of smaller number of students composing the team (for example 4 students as opposed to 8).
An all-female team may be awarded the ArbitralWomen President’s Bursary if the other requirements are met.
Nothing in this Policy prevents a team, which has already received funding in one year, from applying in future years. The Board shall treat each application on its merits and in relation to other applications received for that particular year.
The Board shall effect payment to the final payee rather than directly to the team. In the event the team for any reason cannot participate, the Board at its sole option may request a refund from the organising authority, may request the organising authority to apply the funds to assist another team in that year, or may request that the funds be used to pay for another team in the following year.
Funding will, in the first instance, be sought from external sponsors, who shall be identified and introduced to the sponsored team(s). Further funding by ArbitralWomen itself in any given year will be contingent upon the existence and maintenance of sufficient funds in the account of ArbitralWomen. Each year, the Board will decide the number of awards to be given in that year. Nothing in this Policy obliges the Board to provide funding in any given year.
Although the ArbitralWomen Moot Bursaries are limited to payment of the registration fee, as mentioned above, there is nothing to prevent the chosen sponsors from providing additional assistance to the teams assigned as their "fundee", but any such arrangement will be made directly between the sponsor and the applicable team.
