On the 21st and 22nd of February 2020, the Paris office of Jurisglobal Group had the honour of hosting the first edition of the Client Interviewing Competition organised by ELSA France.
The competition was held in two phases. The first theoretical phase was followed by a practical application.
During the theoretical part, the participants and the organisers of the event attended a workshop managed by Ms. Héloïse Kawaïshi and Ms. Louise Gaentzhirt. This presentation focused on the steps involved in conducting a client interview. In particular, advices focused on welcoming the client, empathic listening, legal preparation for the meeting, managing conflicts of interest and fees.
Under the watchful eye of the jury, the teams competed against each other throughout the day on Saturday. The topic was about a divorce case. It involved orienting the client on the types of divorce, custody arrangements, the duty of assistance, compensatory benefits and the liquidation of the matrimonial regime.
At the end of these client interviews, the members of the Jury collected the impressions of the participants and highlighted the mistakes made by the students. In addition to the legal aspect, these errors concerned in particular the way in which a client was welcomed, non-verbal communication, building client confidence and defending the legal profession.
Finally, Héloïse Kawaïshi and Louise Gaentzhirt conducted a mock interview with Karen Loutfi to show the students the key steps of this meeting.
At the end of the demonstration, the members of the Jury and the Vice-President of Academic Activities of ELSA FRANCE proceeded to hand out certificates to the participants. First place was awarded to Delia Bulete and Elena Wollner from the University of Paris II Panthéon-Assas, followed by Amandine Torset and Clémence Villota from the University of Toulouse-Capitole and finally, Valentine Quiniou and Leina Lelu from the University of Cergy-Pontoise. These participants conducted their interview with Charlotte Desmeules in the role of the client.
Jurisglobal congratulates again all the participants and hopes to see you next year!
