Your YAAP July Newsletter

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Dear Members and Friends,

This YAAP summer follows the weather: Retreats are our arbitration heat waves.

The first heat wave came early this year in June. For us it was the Co-Chairs’ Circle Retreat.  An event that brings co-chairs of young practitioner organizations from around the globe together to discuss measures how to increase member participation and promote young practitioners in arbitration. As the business world is getting rapidly younger we must keep track. Experience shows that changes in the
legal profession tend to lag behind. This is why the role of YAAP and similar organizations around the globe is more important today than ever. This year, YAAP had the honor and pleasure to organize the Retreat event at beautiful Lake Neusiedl. Scroll down for a short review of the results.

Currently the temperatures are pleasant, but the next heat wave will come. Measured in arbitration degrees already this week with the annual Summer Retreat that we co-organize with Swiss ASA below 40, German DIS 40 and Italian ArbIt 40. This extremely successful event was launched two years ago in Austria when tickets were gone a month before the event. After moving to Germany last year, the event is now coming to Switzerland. And the interest in the event remains unabated. We are excited to meet friends in a great setting and learn how to better sell our expertise to clients as this year’s topic is all about “pitching.” A core topic for all of us, independent of age and experience, beginning from day one of your practice: as the business world is becoming younger, the lawyers directly pitching for work will too.

Yours,
Lisa & Filip

P.S. Follow us on LinkedIn!
 
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Upcoming: ASAb40 - DIS40 - AIA ArbIT 40 - YAAP Summer Retreat, Zurich, 19 - 20 July 2019
The focus of this edition of the Practice Building Seminar is Pitching. With the assistance of pitching professionals, you will establish your own pitch and focus on topics such as telling your story, presenting your team and selling your expertise.

Date: Friday/Saturday 19 - 20 July 2019
VenueLandgut Bocken, Horgen, Zurich (Switzerland) 
(Opening Reception in Zurich on Thursday, 18 July 2019 at 8pm)

After the Friday working sessions, there will be plenty of time for meeting old and new friends over drinks and dinner. Saturday opens with pitch presentations, followed by an easy hike (or an even easier taxi ride) and a relaxed lunch. We will head back to Zurich at approx. 3.30 pm. 

 
SAVE THE DATE: „Gender Diversity in Führungspositionen. Sonntagsreden und Realität in der Europäischen Union.“ Vienna, 9 September 2019

It is still some way to go until we achieve equal representation of women in top positions. But why is this so hard? Together with the Young Austrian Arbitration Practitioners (YAAP) and the Austrian Arbitration Association (Arb|Aut), we are pleased to invite you to a highly topical panel on gender diversity at the management level – and the wide gap between rhetoric and reality.

Mariana Kühnel (Deputy Secretary General of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber) will hold welcome remarks. Following a key note delivered by Daniela Bankier (former Head of Gender Equality and current Head of Programme and Financial Management, European Commission Directorate-General for Justice) and an introduction by Lisa Beisteiner (YAAP), a high-calibre panel comprising Paul Oberhammer (University of Vienna – Dean of the Faculty of Law), Heike Mensi-Klarbach (WU – Department for Gender and Diversity in Organizations), Herbert Cordt (RHI Magnesita - Chairman of the Board), Melanie Eckl-Kerber (Federation of Austrian Industries - Dep. Education  & Society), and Günther J. Horvath (President VIAC; Attorney - Partner em. at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer) will explore why we do not seem to be gaining more momentum and what can be done about that. Moderator Judith Knieper (UNCITRAL - Legal Officer and Gender Focal Point) will steer the discussion towards specific conclusions and action points. Join us for an interesting debate as well as a drinks and snacks-reception (see invitation). Elisabeth Vanas-Metzler (VIAC) will guide us through the event.

Date: Monday, 9 September 2019, 5 pm (with coffee starting from 4.30 pm) until 7.15 (followed by a drinks & snacks reception)
Venue: Vienna, Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, Wiedner Hauptstraße 63, Saal 6
Costs: This event is free of charge. Working language: German
Registration: Please send your registration to office@viac.eu.


SAVE THE DATE: YAAP - Young ADR-Belarus - Joint Event in Minsk, Belarus, 19 September 2019

At the eve of the Eastern European Dispute Resolution Forum, jointly with our young colleagues from Belarus, we will explore topical issues of international arbitration in a relaxed atmosphere over coffee and drinks. Details will follow soon.  

Date: Thursday, 19 September 2019 (evening event)
Venue: Minsk, Belarus
Costs: This event is free of charge.
Further details will follow soon.

 
SAVE THE DATE: YAAP Round Table special – Third Party Funding: “Grill” the Funders, Vienna, 28 October 2019

Mark your calendars for a special Round Table with a panel of major funders-representatives, Jonathan Barnett (Nivalion), Ayse Loewe (Bench Walk) and Christiane Deniger (Burford). They will answer tricky questions coming from moderator Leon Kopecky as well as from the floor.
Details to follow soon.


REVIEW: Co-Chairs’ Circle-Retreat at Lake Neusiedl, 7/8 June 2019

The “Co-Chairs Circle” (CCC) is an informal platform which brings together co-chairs of young practitioner organizations around the globe, almost forty at the last count. In order to strengthen the ties between the various young practitioner organizations, members of the CCC organize an annual CCC Retreat as well as a bi-annual “big” CCC Conference. YAAP had the honor and pleasure to organize this year’s CCC Retreat: On 7 and 8 June 2019, co-chairs from over 15 different jurisdictions gathered to discuss issues of common interest. Whilst Saturday was reserved for informal discussion and networking, Friday afternoon was dedicated to two working sessions. Notably, we exchanged and developed ideas on “Best Practices: Measures and actions to involve members and ensure active participation” as well as on the question “How can young practitioners get their seat the adult table?”. You can find a short write-up of the event here. Most importantly: Mark your calendars for next year’s “big” CCC-Conference which shall take place in Brussels on 5/6 June 2020.
 

 
REVIEW: YAAP Round Table on Witness Preparation, Vienna, 19 June 2019

On 19 June, the last YAAP Round Table before the summer break saw a lively discussion on the legal and practical limits of witness preparation. Johanna Büstgens of Hanefeld (Hamburg) set the stage, distinguishing the concepts of witness interviewing, witness familiarization and witness preparation. Johanna also outlined how different jurisdiction take fundamentally different approaches on how far counsel is allowed - or even required – to go when it comes to witness preparation. Whilst it is for the tribunal to level the playing field, practical issues will remain. Leon Kopecky of Schönherr (Vienna) followed up with hands-on recommendations – do’s and don’ts – when coaching a witness. Leon argued that it was our task as counsel to give the witness our time – make sure she knows the case, the format and what is in for her when it comes to hostile cross-examination (it is dead serious, no matter how much people may be smiling at you). With all rehearsals – sometimes even before “shadow tribunals” – a witness should never be over-prepared. A sound measure of memory gaps may be vital for her credibility. Thanks to everyone who joined the event and the discussion!

 
EDUCATION: New Advanced Course on Arbitration and Dispute Resolution for Practitioners with LL.M. Option

Note that the Danube University Krems offers a new Certified Program on Arbitration and Dispute Resolution. In one semester part-time (taught in weekend modules) students receive an in-depth and practice-oriented legal training in commercial arbitration alongside modules on business mediation and negotiation. The next program starts in autumn 2019. For those who wish to specialize in other areas such as international litigation or corporate law/M&A, the program can be chosen as an elective for the Professional LL.M. (4 semesters, part-time).

For further information see: www.donau-uni.ac.at/arbitration and www.donau-uni.ac.at/professional-llm 

 
SURVEY: Design Survey for Delos London hearing centre

Delos Dispute Resolution, an innovative arbitral institution advised notably by Pierre Mayer, Toby Landau and Maxi Scherer, which won last year’s GAR award for innovation, is setting up a new hearing centre in London to be known as “LONDAP”. They have just appointed a Design Committee, which has released the following survey

Delos wants to gather everyone’s views and insights from around the world, with all the cultural and experiential diversity that entails, and would be grateful if you could fill it out so that they may get as many perspectives as possible for the design of LONDAP.

The survey deadline is Friday 19 July, and the results will be reflected in the report of the Design Committee. The conclusions from this process will then be incorporated into the specifications that are being developed for the centre.
 
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