White & Case | Social Responsibility Review

1 of 3

Social Responsibility

http://srreview.whitecase.com/universityrelations.htm

PRO BONO

LEGAL EDUCATION

VOLUNTEERISM & CONTRIBUTIONS

GREEN

AWARDS

Moscow oce lawyers teach practical legal skills

to more than 500 students each year

raditionally, legal education in Russia has strongly emphasized academics and been recognized
for providing an excellent foundation in legal fundamentals. Because law practice in Russia is changing
rapidly, greater training in practical legal skills has become critical for young lawyers, and legal education
has begun to evolve to meet these needs. Since 2005, our Moscow office has played a central role in
this evolution.
Today, we partner with Moscows leading law schools to supplement the existing curriculum with practical
legal skills training. Each year more than 40 White & Case lawyers, including ten partners, deliver more
than ten coursesboth mandatory and electiveto 500 students at six schools. We also support and
host many events for students. The effects of our work are far-reaching: a survey of nearly 4,000 law
students by a Russian recruiting firm found that 49 percent of students questioned have attended a
White & Case lecture or event.
Our courses cover three major modules: practice areas, lawyering skills and the fundamentals of English
law. Many of our courses have already been integrated into the curriculum, all appear on students official
transcripts, 60 percent qualify for credit toward graduation, and some are mandatory for
certain specializations.
Led by Moscow partner Andrei Dontsov and program manager Arina Stolyarova, the White & Case
University Relations Program has been transformed from a purely extra-curricular activity to an integral
part of the curriculum. I started giving my M&A course more than ten years ago, said Andrei. At that
time, courses by practitioners were new to the market and were perceived with a certain level of
skepticism by the academic community. Now we are much more integrated with the schools in terms of
planning, delivery and the curriculum itself. Our relationships with the law schools are very strongwe are
not guests, but members of the team.
Our lawyers and Russian academics work together to create course outlines and assess teaching
techniques and materials. This collaboration has led to new standards. For example, the latest curriculum
adopted by Moscow State University Law School calls for 144 mandatory hours of lectures and seminars
taught by practicing lawyers, 30 percent of which should be interactive. In Dontsovs view, This
represents a significant change in the Russian legal education standard, and we have contributed to it.

The success of
the White & Case
educational program
can be measured both
by the quality of the
teaching and the
response of the
students. The
associates whom I
observed as small
group facilitators were
terric at getting
students to engage
with each other on
the issues.
PROFESSOR PHILIP GENTY,
COLUMBIA LAW SCHOOL
View a law review article by Professor
Genty on the role of the private business
sector in Russian legal education.

White & Case recently took the lead in establishing a legal consortium that unites a broad group of
stakeholdersother firms, corporate law departments, leading academics and experts both from within
and outside Russiato share best practices and consolidate our efforts to reform legal education
in Russia.

22-Aug-15 18:17

White & Case | Social Responsibility Review

2 of 3

Social Responsibility

http://srreview.whitecase.com/universityrelations.htm

PRO BONO

LEGAL EDUCATION

VOLUNTEERISM & CONTRIBUTIONS

GREEN

AWARDS
Kazan State University

The notion of giving back to the Russian legal community is echoed by Hermann Schmitt, head of our
Moscow office: We take our commitment to the development of legal education in Russia very seriously.
Through our active links with the Russian academic community and our sponsorship of the Jessup, we
are proud to support so many talented Russian law students. Many participants go on to enjoy extremely
successful careers both in Russia and abroad, including with us at White & Case.

Moscow State Institute of

International Relations
Moscow State Law Academy
Moscow State University
Russian Academy of Justice

The Jessup Cup goes to Moscow

On March 31 in Washington, DC, a team of law students from Moscow State University won the 2012
White & Case Jessup Cup by prevailing over Columbia University in the final round of the Philip C.
Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. This is the first time a Russian team has won the
world championship.
Judges Joan Donoghue, Kenneth Keith and Hisashi Owada judged the final round, which was the first
time in Jessup history that three judges from the International Court of Justice served on the Final Bench.
Grigory Vaypan and Aleksandra Ivlieva delivered the oral arguments as both applicant and respondent for
the Moscow State University team throughout the competition. Grigory said, This is the third time that
Aleksandra and I have participated in the competition, which really is an Olympic Games for law
students. Each year weve learned and improved our overall performance. Winning this year means so
much to the team, and it is a really positive statement for law students from all over Russia.
The win by Moscow State University is only the seventh time in the 53-year history of Jessup that a
non-native English speaking team has won the competition. With the pleadings in English, it is extremely
unusual for non-English speaking law students to win the competition as oralists are arguing complex
legal scenarios in their non-native language.
White & Cases involvement with the Jessup goes back many years and includes the founding of the first
competition in Russia in 2002, now the worlds largest national competition not split into regional events,
with nearly 50 participating universities. In 2012, six Jessup teams advanced to represent Russia in the
White & Case International Rounds.
We take our commitment to the development of Russian legal education very seriously, said Hermann
Schmitt, Executive Partner of our Moscow office. It is a matter of great joy and pride for everyone
involved that Moscow State University is this years winner.
The 2012 case involved timely issues such as the international standing of a state immediately following a
coup dtat, international responsibility for the use of force by a state while taking part in a regional
military operation and the destruction of a cultural site.

Through the
White & Case
programs, students
acquire the specic
practical skills and
knowledge they need
to succeed in the legal
profession. But more
importantly, they
gain a feel for the
professional mastery
to which they
should aspire.
GENNADIY P. TOLSTOPYATENKO
DEAN, INTERNATIONAL LAW
DEPARTMENT,
MOSCOW STATE INSTITUTE OF
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

The quality of the advocacy we heard was excellent, said Ian Forrester, head of White & Cases Global
Pro Bono Practice. The winning team had so mastered the subject that they spoke without notes,
showing a fluent command of both the details and the big principles. The competition was intense in the
final rounds, and every team showed great talent as creative thinkers and as confident advocates. Each
participant will take home valuable experience and new friendships even if only one takes the trophy.

COURSES
Banking Finance Deals
Capital Markets Basics
International Commercial Arbitration
International Mergers & Acquisitions
Introduction to English Law
Introduction to Transactions
Real Estate Deals
Regulation of Subsoil Use in Russia
Taxation of Business and Foreign Investments Lawyering Skills

22-Aug-15 18:17

White & Case | Social Responsibility Review

3 of 3

Social Responsibility

http://srreview.whitecase.com/universityrelations.htm

PRO BONO

LEGAL EDUCATION

VOLUNTEERISM & CONTRIBUTIONS

GREEN

AWARDS

22-Aug-15 18:17