1.1.

COMPETITION FORMAT
1.1.1. For all four segments, the teams shall be allotted team codes. The
matchups shall be released on the basis of these team codes.

1.1.2. Each team shall compete in two preliminary rounds, which will be held
Online across two days (11th – 12th May 2024).

1.1.3. In each segment, with the exception of the Client Counselling segment,
the teams shall, upon breaking, qualify for the Quarter-Final rounds.
Teams participating in the Client Counselling segment shall break
directly to the Semi-Final rounds. All post-break rounds shall be held at
the NLSIU campus on 13th July 2024.

1.1.4. In the event of a tie between two teams, the tie shall be resolved on the
basis of the aggregate points of certain components in the score sheets of
all judges assessing both the preliminary rounds. The aforementioned
components shall be notified in the score sheet that shall be released to the
participants in advance.

1.1.5. The matchups of all post-break (knock-out) rounds shall take place on the
basis of reverse power allocation.

Illustration: For instance, if teams A, B, C ... G and H qualify (in that order
on the basis of rank), the match ups shall be A versus H, B versus G, and so
on.

1.1.6. All post-break rounds shall be knockout rounds, with the team winning
their respective round proceeding to the next round.
 1.2. OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

1.2.1. The Official Language of the competition shall be English. All

submissions before the judges shall be in English.

1.3. CODE OF CONDUCT

1.3.1. The ADR Board, NLSIU reserves the right to disqualify any team or
impose any other penalty for any kind of misconduct on the part of any
participant during the competition. In case of any doubt or dispute, the
decision of the ADR Board shall be final.

1.3.2. Misconduct includes, but is not restricted to:

1.3.2.1. Disclosure of identity to other participants during the course of the

round or to any judge.

1.3.2.2. Scouting and sharing confidential information or particulars of the

problems.

1.3.2.3. Any attempt to obtain confidential information of Negotiation or

Mediation problems or to obtain confidential problem particulars
with regard to the Client Counselling segment.

1.3.2.4. Contacting the drafters of the problems or any other individuals

who are expressly barred from consultation.

1.3.2.5. Any other conduct which may give a team an unfair advantage over
the other teams.

All teams, participants, and assessors are bound by the NLSIU Code to Combat
Sexual Harassment, 2019. Any violation of the same will result in strict action as per
the Code. The code can be accessed here.
 1.4. GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL

1.4.1. All grievances shall be addressed to the Convenor and Joint Convenor,
Alternative Dispute Resolution Board, NLSIU. Their decision regarding
the same shall be final.

1.5. POWER TO REMOVE DIFFICULTIES

1.5.1. The ADR Board reserves the right to add, modify, or repeal any rule, in
order to remove difficulties. Any change in the rules will be
communicated via email.

1.6. DRESS CODE

1.6.1. Each participant shall be dressed in formal (Indian or Western) for the
duration of the Competition.

1.7. PHOTOGRAPHY / FILMING

1.7.1. Participants and Judges are deemed to have agreed to the use of
photography and videorecording by the ADR Board during the entire
duration of NLS NMC 2024. The ADR Board reserves the right to record
all rounds conducted during the competition. In case any judge in the
Preliminary Rounds is unable to connect or drops off the call during the
round, they will be sent the recording and asked to evaluate the teams on
the basis of the same.

1.7.2. The ADR Board reserves the right to livestream the Final Rounds of each
segment on their social media handles and the participants and judges are
deemed to have consented to this.
1.7.3. Any individual seeking exclusions to the abovementioned points of
photography and videorecording may convey the same to the ADR Board
by sending an email to [email protected] OR [email protected], with
the subject ‘Request for exclusion from Photography/Filming’, no later
than the commencement of the competition.

1.8. DIGITAL GUIDELINES

1.8.1. This section shall be applicable to the preliminary rounds of all segments
of the competition.

1.8.2. The preliminary rounds of the X NLS NMC will be conducted on the
video-conferencing platform, Zoom. All the post-break rounds will be
conducted on the NLSIU Campus physically.

1.8.3. The Mode of Communication for the preliminary rounds between the
Host Institution and members of Selected Teams shall be email and
‘WhatsApp Messenger’ application, unless specified otherwise.

1.8.4. For the preliminary rounds, every team is required to have the necessary
electronic equipment along with a stable internet connection. Any issues
with respect to the device failure, connectivity issues etc. shall be the
responsibility of the team itself.

1.8.5. Every team shall, as far as possible, participate in the session while being
seated in rooms with a professional / solid colour background. The
camera of the electronic gadget being used by the team must clearly show
the participants and the surroundings of the room they are seated in.

1.8.6. In the event of any of the participants in a round facing technical/ audio-
video/ network issues, such that they exit the Competition Room, or are
unable to engage properly, a time of 5-7 minutes shall be provided for said
participants to reconnect with alternative internet connection/s. The
 affected participant must immediately contact the ADR Board in case of
any such issue and provide updates regarding the problem at their
respective end.

1.8.7. Use of any electronic devices, other than the device used to access the
Competition’s Videoconferencing platform, is not permitted during the
round. Photographing and screen recording by the teams during the
round is also forbidden.

1.8.8. Members of the same team need not login from the same device or from
the same place for the purpose of the preliminary rounds.

1.9. RESIDUAL

1.9.1. The ADR Board may take such other measures are required for the
orderly and fair conduct of the Competition. The ADR Board’s
interpretation as to the implementation of the Rules shall be final.

2.
 2.1. COMPOSITION OF TEAMS

2.1.1. Each team shall consist of two students.

2.2. NATURE OF COMPETITION

2.2.1. The segment seeks to simulate a negotiation between teams based on some
common facts (General Information) and information privy to each side
(Confidential Information).

2.3. ROUNDS

2.3.1. The competition shall consist of two preliminary rounds (online),

following which the top eight teams with the highest scores shall proceed
to the Quarterfinals (offline). The matchups of the post-break rounds
shall be based on reverse power allocation.

2.3.2. Qualification of teams from the Quarterfinals to the Semifinals and

subsequently from the Semifinals to the Finals shall be on the principle of
knockouts, based on the decision given by a majority of the panel of
judges.

2.3.3. In case of a split decision amongst the panel in the Quarterfinals or

Semifinal rounds, the scores of the teams per all the judges on the panel
will be added and the team with the higher score will win the round. The
winner of the Finals shall be declared based on the decision given by a
majority of the panel of judges.
 2.4. PROBLEMS

2.4.1. The general set of facts shall be released in advance. The party that a team
will represent during a round will be intimated to them at the same time
as the Confidential Information is made available to them.

2.4.2. The creation of extraneous facts is not permitted. However, participants

may interpret problems to draw reasonable conclusions.

2.4.3. For both the preliminary rounds, the confidential information will be sent
to the teams on 9 May 2024 at 11:59 PM (IST).

2.4.4. For the post-break rounds, the Confidential Information will be shared
with the team on campus physically prior to the commencement of the
round.

Quarterfinals: The Confidential Information will be released 30 minutes

prior.
Semifinals: The Confidential Information will be released 45 minutes
prior.
Finals: The Confidential Information will be released 45 minutes prior.

2.4.5. For all post-break rounds, the teams will not be allowed to use any
electronic devices for research or communicate with any third person
during the time after the release of confidential information and for the
duration of the round.

2.4.6. The amount of time available to the participants after release of

confidential information may be changed at the discretion of the ADR
Board. However, the Board shall ensure that the teams receive the same
amount of time.
2.4.7. The teams shall not disclose their confidential information to any other
participant throughout the competition. Disclosure of confidential
information by any team before or after their own round shall be grounds
for immediate disqualification from the competition.

2.5. ROUND DURATION

2.5.1. Preliminary Round I and II (online) – 40 minutes

2.5.2. Quarter Final Round – 40 minutes

2.5.3. Semi-Final Rounds – 60 minutes

2.5.4. Final Rounds – 60 minutes

2.5.5. Provided that the round duration may be changed at the discretion of the
ADR Board before the release of the confidential information.
 3.1. COMPOSITION OF TEAMS

3.1.1. Each participating team in the Client-Attorney Segment shall consist

of 2 students.

3.1.2. Each participating team in the Mediator Segment shall consist of 1

student.

3.1.3. The Client-Attorney pair and the Mediator representing a university

shall be considered to be two distinct teams and the qualification of
one neither guarantees nor depends on the qualification of the other.

3.1.4. As far as possible, no Mediator will mediate a round with a Client-

Attorney team from the same university.

3.2. NATURE OF COMPETITION

3.2.1. A Mediation session shall comprise of two competing teams, with two
team members on each side representing the parties to the dispute,
aiming to negotiate a transaction or resolve a dispute in the presence of a
mediator.

3.2.2. Each round shall have a set of common facts and different Confidential
Information for each side. Mediators shall only be entitled to common
facts, and Confidential Information shall not be shared with them at
any time before the round.
 3.3. ROUNDS

CLIENT-ATTORNEY SEGMENT

3.3.1. The competition shall consist of two preliminary rounds (online),

following which the top eight teams with the highest scores shall
proceed to the Quarter-Final rounds (o!ine). The matchups of the
post-break rounds shall be based on reverse power allocation.

3.3.2. Qualification of teams from the Quarter-Final round to the Semi-Final

and subsequently from the Semi-Final to the Final round shall be on the
principle of knockouts, based on the decision given by a majority of
the panel of judges.

3.3.3. In case of a split decision amongst the panel in the Quarter-Final or

Semi-Final rounds, the scores of the teams per all the judges on the panel
will be added and the team with the higher score would win that round.
The winner of the Finals shall be declared based on the decision given by
a majority of the panel of judges.

MEDIATION SEGMENT

3.3.4. The top 4 mediators with the highest scores from the preliminary rounds
shall mediate the Quarter-Final rounds of the Mediation segment. The 4
Quarter-Final rounds shall be judged by 2 benches and thus, each bench
would assess 2 mediators. Each bench shall decide and advance one
mediator and thus, 2 mediators shall proceed to the Semi Final rounds.
These 2 mediators shall mediate the Semi-Final rounds and one shall be
adjudicated the winner.

3.3.5. The winning mediator shall mediate the Final round of the Mediation
segment.
 3.4. PROBLEMS

3.4.1. The general set of facts shall be released in advance. The party that a team
will represent during a round will be intimated to them at the same time
as the Con!dential Information is made available to them.

3.4.2. The creation of extraneous facts is not permitted. However,

participants may interpret problems to draw reasonable conclusions.

3.4.3. For both the preliminary rounds, the con!dential information will be sent
to the teams on 9 May 2024 at 11:59 PM (IST).

3.4.4. For the post-break rounds, the con!dential information will be shared
with the teams in-person prior to the commencement of their round.

Quarter!nals: The Con!dential Information will be released 30

minutes prior.
Semi!nals: The Con!dential Information will be released 45 minutes
prior.
Finals: The Con!dential Information will be released 45 minutes prior.

3.4.5. For all post-break rounds, the teams will not be allowed to use any
electronic devices for research or communication with any third person,
after the release of the Con!dential Information, as well as for the
duration of their round.

3.4.6. The amount of time available to the participants after release of

con!dential information in any round may be changed at the discretion
of the ADR Board, as long as it is ensured that the teams are receiving
the same amount of time.

3.4.7. The teams shall not disclose their confidential information to any
other participant throughout the competition. Disclosure of
 confidential information by any team before or after their own round
shall be grounds for immediate disqualification from the
competition.

3.5. ROUND DURATION

3.5.1. Preliminary Round I and II (online) – 40 minutes

3.5.2. Quarter Final Round – 40 minutes

3.5.3. Semi-Final Rounds – 60 minutes

3.5.4. Final Rounds – 60 minutes

3.5.5. Provided that the round duration may be changed at the discretion
of the ADR Board before the release of the confidential information.

3.5.6. The Mediator and both the Client-Attorney Teams will have the
opportunity to call for one caucus each during a Mediation Session. Each
caucus may last for a maximum of five minutes each (for the Preliminary
rounds and the Quarterfinals), and 7 minutes each (for the Semi-Finals
and the Finals). During a caucus, the concerned Client-Attorney team
will stay in the room while the other Client-Attorney team shall leave the
room and remain outside till the caucus ends.

3.5.7. The clock for the round will not be paused during the caucus i.e., the time
for caucus is included within the total time stipulated for the rounds.

4.
 4.1. COMPOSITION OF TEAMS

4.1.1. Each team shall consist of two students.

4.2. NATURE OF THE SEGMENT

4.2.1. The segment shall simulate a client interview at a lawyer’s office.

4.2.2. Each round shall be divided into two parts, i.e.

4.2.2.1. Client Consultation Session and

4.2.2.2. Post-Consultation Session.

4.2.3. In the client consultation session, participants are expected to elicit

information from the client, briefly analyze the issues identified, and
tender preliminary recommendations and legal advice to the client.

4.2.4. The client consultation session shall be followed by a post-consultation

session during which the participants, in the absence of the client, are
expected to legally analyze the various issues that the case presents and
discuss the future course of action. They shall discuss the suggestions
made by them to the client and whether they could have used a better
approach in the session. The judges may also question the teams on their
presentations.

4.2.5. All participants, regardless of their country of residence, shall be deemed

to be subject to the professional rules of ethics and conduct as issued by
the Bar Council of India under the Advocates Act, 1961.
 4.3. ROUNDS

4.3.1. The competition shall consist of two Preliminary Rounds (online),

following which, four teams with the highest scores shall qualify for the
Semi-Finals (offline). The winning teams of the Semi-Final rounds shall
compete in the Finals.

4.4. COMPETITION TOPICS

4.4.1. The broad area of law for all the rounds shall be released in advance. This
information shall be released in the form of an Office Memo written by
the Office Secretary for the concerned lawyers.

4.5. ROUND DURATION

4.5.1. The Client Consultation Sessions shall of the following duration:

Preliminary Rounds I and II – 25 minutes

Semi-Final Rounds – 30 minutes
Final Round – 45 minutes

4.5.2. The Post Consultation Sessions shall of the following duration:

Preliminary Rounds I and II – 5 minutes

Semi-Final Rounds – 10 minutes
Final Round – 10 minutes

4.5.3. This is in addition to the time specified for the Client Consultation
Session.
 4.6. USE OF PROPS AND EQUIPMENT

4.6.1. Participants are not expected to bring any props or office furnishings for
use in the rounds. There shall be no weightage in the marking criteria for
the same.