Message from the Vis Moot Organization and Vis East Moot Foundation
Advising students, coaches, arbitrators and supporters to disregard and to not use or distribute the “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the 33rd Willem C. Vis Moot Problem”
It has come the attention of the Vis Moot Organization and Vis East Moot Foundation (“Vis Moots”) that two individuals have authored and distributed a “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the 33rd Willem C. Vis Moot Problem”, without seeking permission from the Vis Moot Organization or the Directors. The Vis Moots consider the “guide” a grave matter as it violates the “spirit of the Vis Moot” as it significantly undermines the Vis Moot students’ learning journey, experience and opportunities.
As stated on the Vis Moot website: “The purpose of the Vis Moot is to foster the study of international commercial law and arbitration and provide a practical training to students for resolving international business disputes.” The Vis Moots seeks to promote student learning through hands-on engagement with the process of analyzing the case problem, sorting through the case materials, developing organizational and research strategies, developing a case chronology and narrative, creating analysis and arguments, and drafting the Claimant and Respondent memoranda as a team, considering different perspectives and ideas in the process. The learning process and skills development requires the students to do the work themselves and not “get a free ride in someone else’s vehicle”. (Cambridge Dictionary definition of a hitchhiker). The hard work of the journey is the real goal and transformative impact of the Vis Moot experience.
The Vis Moots therefore encourage all Vis Moot students, teams and coaches to disregard and not use the “Hitchhiker’s Guide”. The “guide” provides a short-cut recipe created by two recent Vis Moot students, with presumably good, but misguided, intentions. The work that you and your team members do together will be far more substantial and will reap much better results and lasting learning and professional skills.