1st USLLS-Equilaw National Essay Writing Competition, 2023: No Registration Fee!

About USLLS 

Established in 2001, University School of Law and Legal Studies envisages advancement of  institutional expertise in the area of legal research and education by augmenting academic and  professional excellence, developing critical and relentless engagement with legal theory and  practice, synergizing law, legal research, legal education and action to further the quest for justice.  

About USLLS ADR Cell 

The ADR Cell endeavors to instill various practical skills amongst our students who wish to pursue  a career in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution, and to consistently aid their development  so that they can pursue their goals and aspirations pertaining to the field of ADR. The objective of  the Cell is to provide quality knowledge in the field of ADR. Hence, it is hosting 1st USLLS EquiLaw National Essay Writing Competition, 2023.  

Our Sponsors 

1. Equi-Law: qui Law Partners, Advocates & Legal Consultants is a reputable full-service  law firm based in Jangpura-B, South Delhi, India. Founded by Advocate Praveen Mahajan  (B. Com, ACS, LLB), Founder & Principal Partner, and Advocate Ruchi Mahajan,  Managing Partner (B. Com, ACS, LLB, MBA), the firm has been providing litigation and  consultancy services to clients since 1999. Some of their practice areas include, Civil Disputes, Competition Law, Advisory,  Insolvency, and variety of other fields. 
2. CaseMine: CaseMine is a legal research platform offering one of the largest and most comprehensive databases of case law from common law judicial systems from India, US and UK integrated with state-of-the-art artificial intelligence. CaseMine recognized the transformative power of Extractive AI and introduced CaseIQ which uses documents as a  query to obtain highly relevant search results. 

About the Competition

• The competition is open to law students enrolled in 3 Year LL.B. programme and 5-year  integrated law programme. 
• The theme of the competition revolves around the field of Alternate Dispute Resolution.  The competition gives creative freedom to participants to express their opinions and  academic research skills, keeping the suggested themes in mind. 
• Preference will be given to essays which add to the academic discourse over the theme and  objectives. Submissions which merely summarise or analyse the case will not be preferred,  unless found to be exceptional. 
• The acceptance of the submitted articles would be subject to the evaluation criteria and  process determined by the ADR Cell editorial board. The shortlisted articles will be subject  to a comprehensive review. 
• The winners will be decided by the Editorial Board; the same shall be final and not open  to any challenge. 
• The essays will be compiled and print-published in a book as well as on the website of  USLLS ADR Blog, with all rights reserved by the university. 
• The published copies would be circulated to the top law colleges, libraries, law firms and  arbitration institutions, with the collaborative effort of the University School of Law and  Legal Studies and our sponsors. 

Themes Of the Competition 

• Interplay of Arbitration Law with various Sectoral Regulations 
  • Exploring Jurisdictional Dynamics: India’s Journey in International Investment Law and  arbitration 
  • Arbitrability of Intellectual Property Disputes: The interplay of conflicting principles  between Arbitration and Insolvency proceedings 
  • Legislative gap between Arbitration Act and Foreign Exchange Management Act 
  • Legitimacy of Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) vis-à- vis Arbitration
• Evolving Contemporary dynamics and transformative Advancements in the Indian  Arbitration Law 
  • Navigating India’s Arbitration Law Reforms for a Progressive Legal Landscape.
  • The Advent of contemporary mechanisms of using Information Technology in Arbitration.
  • The status and enforceability of Emergency Arbitrator Proceedings. 
  • Bridging Traditional Practices with Modern Global Dynamics in Indian Arbitration Law.
  • The Role of Med-Arb: Integrating Mediation and Arbitration for Effective Dispute  Resolution in India 
• India’s position in the International Arbitration Law Regime 
  • Harmonizing International Arbitration Law through Ensuring Consistency in Awards  amidst Parallel Proceedings. 
  • Global Recognition and Expertise: India’s Arbitrators and Legal Professionals in  International Arbitration. 
  • Global Perception and Compliance: Evaluating India’s Adherence to International  Arbitration Norms. 
• Changes with the introduction of The Mediation Act, 2023. 
  • Deconstructing Legal Foundations: A Deep Dive into Mediation Act 2023
  • Practical Implications: Applying the Mediation Act in Real-world Cases
  • Comparative Jurisprudence: Benchmarking the Mediation Act Against Global Standards

*The themes are not exhaustive but only suggestive.* 

Prizes And Awards 

• Cash Prizes and gifts amounting to Rs. 20,000/- for the top 3 entries of the  competition. 
  • 1st Prize– Rs. 10,000/- 
  • 2nd Prize– Rs. 6,000/- 
  • 3rd Prize– Rs. 4,000/-
    All selected essays to be compiled and published in a curated publication (in the form of a printed book) to be circulated amongst top law Universities and firms. Selected essays to be published on the USLLS ADR BLOG website as well. 
• The top 5 Authors selected for publication would be offered an offline internship opportunity with Equi Law Partners, subject to their policy. 
• The authors of the top 10 entries will get a 1- Year subscription to the legal database curated by CaseMine. 
• A ‘Certificate of Merit” Shall be provided to all the accepted entries. 

Submission Guidelines 

• The essays are to be submitted through the provided Google form only (The same can be accessed https://forms.gle/dhyCrEKJLaKyWJex6).  
• Submissions made by any other means shall not be considered. 
• Authors are instructed to not put their names anywhere in the main submission.
• All entries should be submitted in .doc or .docx format. Co-authorship of a maximum of  two persons is permitted. 
• The author(s) bear sole responsibility for the accuracy of facts, opinions or views stated in  the submissions. 
• Submission and publication of manuscripts that purposefully target or intend to harm the  religious, socio-cultural, and/or political sentiments of any reasonable reader are strictly  prohibited. The submissions must strictly be limited to legal research of the suggested  topics. 
• The word limit for each article is 2500-3000 words. Footnotes shall be exclusive of the  word limits and no comments shall be allowed in it. 
• Citations must strictly conform to the standards laid down in the Oxford University  Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA) (4th Edition) format.
• Word limit for the abstract: 150 to 200 words. Essays must be original, unpublished, non plagiarised and shall not be under simultaneous consideration for publication elsewhere 

Contact Details 

• Write at: [email protected]
• Vaibhav Garg (Convenor)- 9468069381
• Ansh Gupta (Co- Convenor)- 9999409169

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