Forging Security through Rule of Law: Oral Advocacy Skills and Mediation Training for National Mock Trial Competitions | INL17GR0036 INLWHPMEXICO 05032017

Opportunity Information: Apply for INL17GR0036 INLWHPMEXICO 05032017

The grant opportunity titled "Forging Security through Rule of Law: Oral Advocacy Skills and Mediation Training for National Mock Trial Competitions" is a discretionary funding program offered by the U.S. Department of State through the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). It is structured as a grant and falls under the funding activity category of Law, Justice, and Legal Services, with the associated CFDA number listed as 19.703. The program name and the opportunity number (INL17GR0036 / INLWHPMEXICO 05032017) indicate it is tied to INL rule-of-law programming and, based on the embedded reference to Mexico in the opportunity number, appears oriented toward strengthening justice-sector capacity in that context through practical skills development.

At its core, the opportunity is designed to support programming that builds oral advocacy and mediation skills connected to national mock trial competitions. The emphasis on "forging security through rule of law" signals a broader objective: improving legal practice and dispute resolution capabilities as a pathway to stronger institutions, increased public trust, and better administration of justice. By focusing on mock trial competitions, the project concept leans on experiential learning and structured competitive formats to cultivate courtroom-ready advocacy competencies, professional ethics, and procedural literacy. The addition of mediation training suggests the program is not limited to adversarial litigation skills, but also aims to strengthen alternative dispute resolution capacity, which can reduce burdens on courts, encourage negotiated outcomes, and promote more efficient and fair conflict resolution.

Funding is available up to an award ceiling of $5,000,000, and the opportunity anticipates making one award. That structure typically implies a single implementing organization would be expected to design and manage a national-level program, potentially coordinating across multiple regions, institutions, or partner entities to deliver training, coaching, and competition support at scale. The timeline provided shows the opportunity was created on May 4, 2017, with an original closing date of July 3, 2017, indicating a roughly two-month application window typical of many U.S. government competitive grant solicitations.

Eligibility is limited to nonprofit organizations, including both nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education) and nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status (also excluding institutions of higher education). In practical terms, that means universities themselves are not eligible to apply as the prime applicant under this solicitation, but nonprofit organizations with relevant expertise in legal training, judicial reform, dispute resolution, advocacy education, or competition-based learning models could serve as lead implementers. Depending on program design and grant terms, eligible nonprofits might still partner with law schools, bar associations, courts, or civil society groups as subrecipients or collaborating institutions, even if those partners cannot serve as the primary applicant.

Overall, the opportunity can be understood as a sizable, single-award rule-of-law capacity-building grant focused on training and structured mock trial programming to improve oral advocacy and mediation skills. The stated framing ties these professional competencies to broader security and governance outcomes, reflecting INL's typical emphasis on strengthening justice systems as a component of public security and institutional resilience.

• The Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics-Law Enforcement in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Forging Security through Rule of Law: Oral Advocacy Skills and Mediation Training for National Mock Trial Competitions" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.703.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 04, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 03, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $5,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

Apply for INL17GR0036 INLWHPMEXICO 05032017

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