Mediation Championship India: GIMAC, GNLU And The PACT To host India's Top Mediation Talent In Gujarat

The unique nature of MCI is rooted in its 'league of champions' concept. In other words, annually, over 2,000 law students participate in mediation competitions domestically and abroad, with only 100 of these champions invited on merit to challenge for the title of 'The National Mediation Champion'. The event will also see top mediation professionals honoured with the title of the 'National !mPACT Award in Mediation' at the red-carpet gala dinner on September 14.

In its first major venture into the mediation world, GIMAC has opened up its premises to convene India's finest gathering of mediation professionals and aspirants. GIMAC aims to support the growth and development of mediation as a collaborative process that can complement arbitration in high-stake maritime disputes where the people behind the problem are as important as the problem itself.

Courtesy of an anonymous sponsor, all challengers and professionals participating at MCI 2024 will be gifted a copy of 'Mediation Simplified' – India's only interactive workbook on Mediation. Asian School of Cyber Laws (ASCL) are also collaborating with The PACT to take forward the mediation education movement in India. ASCL and The PACT will host a soft launch of their online certificate course in Mediation at MCI 2024. India's Top 100 Mediation Talents will be awarded a free online mediation training, courtesy 'The Sadhana Ramachandran Scholarship for Excellence in Mediation'.

MCI 2024 will be attended by Retd. Justice A K Sikri and Retd. Justice Kurian Joseph, Former Judges of the Supreme Court of India; Retd. Justice Gita Mittal, Former Chief Justice of J&K High Court; Sriram Panchu, Senior Advocate and Mediator; Tejas Karia, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas; Sudhanshu Batra: Senior Advocate & Mediator; J P Sengh, Senior Advocate & Mediator, Maadhyam; Chitra Narayan, Mediator and Co-founder, FCDR; Prashant Popat, Senior Partner, ALMT Legal; Tine Abraham, Partner, Trilegal; Rukmani Menon, Advocate & Senior Mediator; Kamala Naganand, Mediator and Managing Partner, Aarna Law; Monark Gahlot, Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas; Sahil Narang, Partner, Khaitan & Co.; Vikash Kumar Jha, Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas; Sanjana Rao, Partner, CrestLaw Partners; Shweta Sahu, Lead, Cross-Border Enforcement, Nishith Desai Associates; Manoj Panzade, Partner, Dentons Link Legal; Suadat Ahmad Kirmani, Partner, IndusLaw; Soni Singh, Partner, VGA Legal, Shruti Khanijow, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas; Shruti Swaika, Partner, Fox & Mandal; Ankit Parhar, Partner, Poovayya & Co; Chandra Shekar Mishra, Principal Associate, Dua Associates; Radhika Shapoorjee, Mediator and Cofounder, Mediation Mantras; Pusshp Gupta, Advocate & Mediator; Juieen Nag, Mediator and Cofounder, Riverus; Sneha Nagaraj, Partner, Frontier Legal; Mayuri Khatu, Head of Legal, Tata International, Ajit Singh, Head of People Experience, Nokia, Mehak Oberoi, Legal Head, GE Vernova, Arjun Doshi, Head of Litigation, Adani Ports, Deepika Kinhal (CEO, CORD), Gokul Narayan (COO, ASCL), Nipun Bhatiaa (CEO, LLC), Tanima Tandon, Devanshi Dalal and Jatan Rodrigues (Khaitan & Co.) and many more respected names in the mediation profession.

Importantly, MCI 2024 being hosted in Gujarat will also present a unique opportunity to, once again, honour the son of the soil and senior mediator, Late Niranjan J Bhatt, who passed away last year. This year, the families of advocates Amar Bhatt and Priya Vakil will honour their father's memory by sponsoring 'The Niranjan Bhatt !mPACT Caucus', a round-table discussion to deliberate on the future of Mediation in India. Students will also benefit from the Suadat Ahmad Kirmani ADR Fellowship, The Laila Ollapally Award for Mediation Advocacy, The FCDR Smart Mediator Award at MCI 2024 and the Justice Gita Mittal Mediation Training Scholarship.