March 2011
In February, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI), the Knyazyan & Partners Law Office, Armauthor (an Armenian non-governmental organization) and the American University of Armenia Law Department organized an intellectual property law moot court competition for Armenian law students. The competition, which provided the students with practical experience, emphasized the importance of intellectual property to legal and economic development. Leading up to the competition, participating students learned concepts of stare decisis and case precedence, and enhanced their written and oral advocacy skills.
Armenian legal professionals coached the seven university teams that participated in the competition. Local judges, including the deputy minister of justice, the head of Armenia’s Intellectual Property Law Agency and the head of the International Law Department at the Constitutional Court presided over a hypothetical case invoking domestic and international trademark and copyright protections. Also in attendance were representatives from the European Union’s Advisory Group and Patent Office.
A training that preceded the competition addressed legal writing, analysis and advocacy skills, and introduced United States intellectual property case law. Many of the competitors are also taking an intellectual property law course ABA ROLI developed and sponsored. Subsequent trainings and competitions will take place in the coming months.
ABA ROLI’s program in Armenia is supported by the United States Agency for International Development.
To learn more about our work in Armenia, contact the ABA Rule of Law Initiative at <[email protected]>.