Negotiation Intensive and Moot Court

Limit: 20 students

Everyone negotiates, and lawyers negotiate more than most people. The purpose of this course is to study and practice effective negotiating strategies and techniques, and also to prepare students for the School and Regional ABA Negotiation Competitions.

Students will study materials on negotiation, conduct negotiation simulations, and deliver written and oral critiques of recorded and actual negotiation simulations. This course requires weekly intensive preparation, teamwork, class discussion and coordination of schedules. The negotiation scenarios simulate legal negotiations in which law students (usually acting as lawyers) negotiate a series of legal problems or observe and critique a negotiation simulation. The simulations consist of a common set of facts known by all participants and confidential information known only to the participants representing a particular side of the negotiation simulation. While all of the School Negotiation Competition simulations deal with the same general topic, the other simulations that take place before the School Negotiation Competition will explore a variety of legal and ethical issues, facts, negotiation techniques, and strategies.

This class has an intensive format. We will meet once a week in 4-hour class sessions, culminating in the School Negotiation Competition, the date of which will be announced later. (Please note that the competition is an all-day event.)

Given the intensive class structure and schedule, students may not add or drop the class after the add/drop deadline. In addition, class attendance is mandatory unless excused in advance or in the case of an emergency. Participation in the School Competition is also required.

There is no exam, and the class is graded on a Credit/No Credit basis. This class qualifies for experiential credit.

Between two and six students will be chosen from the School Negotiation Competition to represent the law school at the Regional Negotiation Competition. Students who compete in the Regional Competition are eligible to receive an additional credit hour. The Regional Competition will take place either the first to the second weekend in November. The exact location and weekend of the Regional Negotiation Competition is unknown at this time but will be determined by the ABA Law Student Division in early October.
The National Competition will be held in late January or early February. Any student team that places first in the Regional Competition will be invited to participate in the National Competition. Any student team that places second may be invited to participate in the National Competition. Any students who compete in the National Competition will be eligible to receive an additional credit hour in the Spring Semester.

Skills: negotiation, analysis