While many of us may have been winding down at the end of 2021, 10 SUSS Law Programme students were busy pitting passionately against competitors from 34 different nations and territories in the international Mediation Singapore (IMSG) 2021 – a global moot court competition that celebrates and tests students on mediation advocacy and mediation skills.
Forty-eight teams competed in IMSG 2021, comprising five rounds held over two weekends, working on case problems based on real international disputes. This year’s team from SUSS included students Ms Lydia Lee, Ms Intan Suhaily binte Abu Bakar, Mr Yeo Yong Chuan, Mr Sebastian Hoe, Mr Poh Chee Eng, Mr Vincent Low, Mr Lim Xiang, Mr Khairul Anwar bin Mohamed Norahim, Ms Maria Santosh and Ms Georgina Teo.
Team SUSS at the IMSG 2021.
Rounds 1 to 4 saw two teams competing against each other as either the Mediation Advocate or the Mediator. Round 5 was a multi-party mediation session where three teams competed as Mediation Advocates while the fourth competed as the Mediator. This unique competition format provided the participants with exposure to a wider range of opposing teams and their differing debate styles.
The students’ hard work, with coaching from SUSS law lecturers Mr Melvin Loh and Associate Professor Alvin Cheng, and support from SUSS law alumni Mr Dominic Wong, Mr Lai Mun Loon and Mr Joseph Tan who had participated in last year’s competition, saw them emerging triumphant by taking home a total of three gold medals, two silver medals and one bronze medal!
Ms Santosh shared: “I am so proud that SUSS had won so many medals! I am grateful for the opportunity to participate in IMSG 2021 with the best group of people and to have been mentored by our wonderful professors and seniors, who had sacrificed so many weekends and hours patiently helping us and encouraging us. It was exhausting spending weeks preparing for the competition and sparring with each other, but we grew really close as a team and I have developed great friendships from there. It was a great experience participating in the competition as it had enabled me to meet and learn from law practitioners, academics and students from around the world!”