The counsel of today are the arbitrators of tomorrow. Yet one cannot become a great advocate, or, in due course, a great arbitrator, by watching from the sidelines. Opportunities to address a tribunal or a court are worth their weight in gold, and many young and diverse counsel have earned the opportunity to come off the bench and get in the game.

Supportive colleagues who are prepared to champion junior advocates, and clients who are prepared to put their faith in them and their abilities, are required. Perhaps more art than science, the path to becoming a great advocate is paved with lessons learned on your feet. Yet, it is primarily domestic courts, not arbitral tribunals, and institutions, that presently appear to be leading the way in championing junior advocates.

In the same way that arbitrators publish their procedural preferences and Judges share their Part Rules, nothing prevents arbitrators from making their support of the use of junior advocates, when appropriate, known, albeit with an acknowledgement that the final decision about how the case will be presented is ultimately a matter for the parties and their advisors.

By encouraging and facilitating the participation of junior advocates in arbitral proceedings, we equip them with the tools required to become better arbitrators in the future. Tribunals and arbitral institutions, like courts and their judicial peers across the globe, can and should do more to champion opportunities for junior advocates.