Team Cardiff scoop best in Wales accolade at annual negotiation challenge

Two Cardiff students recently came second at an annual competition which sees entrants from across the UK negotiate their way to the top!

GDL students Hannah Williams and Cliona Tanner-Smith beat 47 teams to come second at this year’s National Negotiation Competition final, sponsored by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), which took place on 23 March at the University of Law, Moorgate, London. Despite not taking home the top England and Wales prize, Hannah and Cliona were the most successful team to compete from a Welsh university which means they will now represent the School again but this time at the International Final which takes place in Brazil in July 2024.

The annual competition sees students battling through rounds designed to test their negotiation skills. The competition gives participants the opportunity to work on real life scenarios where collaborative-based discussions take place and a confident awareness of wider interests, creative options, and persuasion techniques are required.

All of the teams that took part in 2024’s competition enhanced their commercial awareness, with half representing the following in a number of hypothetical scenarios:

• a construction company involved in a new airport in Gozo (Malta)
• a social media influencer in a sponsorship contract
• a trade union negotiating a pay deal with a Rail Operator

Hannah and Cliona were not the only students from Cardiff to compete in the final as they were joined by LLB studentOliver Cadin and LLM student Michelle-Angela Abayomi-Delavina who also did incredibly well.

Hannah Williams said, “This has been a fantastic experience, from tackling negotiation scenarios at the School of Law and Politics to reaching the finals of the National Competition. My highlights included taking part in an advanced negotiation training day held at CEDR’s HQ, receiving feedback from judges spanning different industries and meeting fellow law students from across the UK. We owe our success to Julie Price, our mentor, for her invaluable guidance. Next stop, Brazil!”

Cliona added "Taking part in the Negotiation Competition has been a wonderful aspect of my time here at Cardiff. It has been a great opportunity to network with future lawyers from across the UK and gain legal experience outside of the GDL course. I have found the process of negotiating to be very enjoyable and look forward to representing Wales internationally. A big thank you to our coach, Julie Price, and everyone who has supported us on this journey."

Law students at the School of Law and Politics are able to develop a range of skills via extracurricular activities which focus on the development of practical competences including negotiation and client interviewing.

Find out more about the National Negotiation Competition on the CEDR website.