Alan R.A. Merson

Alan Merson, a native of Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland delivered the Immortal Memory at the Robert Burns Supper on January 26, 2002 at the Seventh Regiment Armory, New York City. At 24 years of age, he may be the youngest presenter in 145 years since the New York Caledonian Club has held this annual event. He became interested in Burns through his father, a Burns scholar and frequent speaker in northeast Scotland. Merson attended Glasgow University School of Law and received the Saint Andrew's Society of the State of New York Scholarship in January 2000. While at Glasgow University, he followed his interests in debating and represented the university at the World Debating Championships in Sydney in 2000. Just two weeks ago [Jan., 2002], he represented New York University School of Law at the World Debating Championships in Toronto. He won the tournament, beating 228 teams from 90 universities in 30 countries. This was only the third time a US team had won the competition in its 22 year history. In May 2002 Alan will complete his Masters (LLM) in International Legal Studies at NYU School of Law. He is currently interning part-time at the United Nations while studying, courtesy of the Fulbright Scholarship Program, a joint initiative between the United States and the United Kingdom. Alan Merson currently practices law in London, England.