Harvard Law School’s team recently won the Eric Bergsten Award for Best Memorandum on Behalf of Claimant and the First Runner-Up for Best Memorandum on Behalf of Respondent at the Eleventh Willem C. Vis East Moot, which was held from March 31 to April 6 in Hong Kong. In the oral rounds, Harvard competed against teams from Stockholm University, the Royal University of Law and Economics, National Law Institute University, and National Law University, Delhi and was selected as one of the teams to advance to the Round of 32. The team then lost a hard-fought match against the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences. All three of Harvard’s oralists – James Fox (LLM ’14), Tessa Hayes (captain, JD ’14), and Mitchell Moranis (JD ’14) – received honorable mention awards for Best Oral Advocate. The team was also comprised of Albert Teng (JD ’15) and Sarah Weiner (captain, JD ’15). They received invaluable coaching assistance from Giovanna Micheli, James Hosking (LLM ’00), and Mark Stadnyk (LLM ’11), as well as faculty support from Professor Virginia Wise.

The Vis East Moot is the sister competition of the Vis Moot, which is held in Vienna each year. Both competitions provide an opportunity for students to get exposure to international commercial arbitration as well as international sales law, namely the U.N. Convention of the International Sale of Goods (CISG). This year’s problem dealt with issues related to the finality of arbitration awards, combining multiple claims into one proceeding, and the sphere of applicability of the CISG.