UQ law students win inaugural negotiation competition

The University of Queensland Law School has again proven its prowess in law competitions after winning the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) Negotiating Outcomes on Time (Noot) competition this May.
TC Beirne School of Law students Rebekah Oldfield and Briony Driscoll out-performed seven Queensland university teams in the competition held in Brisbane, with the final negotiation adjudicated by the AAT President, The Hon Justice Duncan Kerr, and Senior AAT member Ms Geri Ettinger.

Ms Oldfield, who was also named ‘Best Communicator’ in the competition, said the experience has sparked a greater interest in alternative dispute resolution (ADR) processes.
“I enjoy administrative law and I liked the fact that this competition involves a non-adversarial settlement process between parties so I thought it would be a good introduction to mooting competitively,” Ms Oldfield said. “Taking part in the competition gave me the opportunity to talk to ADR specialists and mediators to find out more about the different areas in which ADR is used and the career opportunities there are in this area of law.”
Over the three rounds of the competition the ‘Noot’ teams took part in negotiation sessions concerning a range of administrative law areas, including social security law, workers’ compensation, and civil aviation law.
Ms Driscoll and Ms Oldfield each received winner’s trophy and a team prize of a mediation training course from competition sponsors LEADR and Bond University Dispute Resolution Centre.
Penultimate year student Ms Driscoll said the competition experience and specialist training course will provide a significant advantage in pursuing her career goals.
“ADR is really important as the majority of cases are settled using these processes and it’s an area that I’m looking to get more experience in,” Ms Driscoll said. “I received useful critical feedback from very experienced conciliators during the competition and the prize will help me to develop my skills in this area.”
The mooting team was coached by UQ administrative law expert Dr Peter Billings and leading barrister and UQ Law alumna Kathryn McMillan QC.
Dr Billings said the competition provided an authentic ADR experience for the students and that the students’ success was borne out of meticulous preparation and an understanding of the demands of ‘new advocacy’ in a non-adversarial dispute resolution setting.

About the University of Queensland Law School Bachelor of Laws

Program: Graduate-entry Bachelor of Laws (LLB)
Location: Brisbane, Queensland
Semester intake: February 2015
Duration: 3 years
Application deadline: November 30, 2014
Entry Requirements
Applicants must have completed an undergraduate degree in any discipline.
International applicants from Canada with a cumulative average of approximately 75 per cent or above in their university studies, are eligible to apply to University of Queensland Law School‘s graduate-entry Bachelor of Laws. Please note that each applicant’s average is calculated over all years of university study. The University of Queensland does not require the LSAT for entry. Work experience is not required for admission.
Students who have not yet completed an undergraduate degree may apply, as long as they will have graduated prior to commencing UQ’s LLB program.

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To find out more about studying law in Australia and at the University of Queensland Law School, contact OzTREKK’s Australian Law Schools Admissions Officer Sarah Bridson. Phone Sarah at 1 866-698-7355 (toll free in Canada), or email sarah@oztrekk.com.