Proceedings before the Football Arbitration Tribunal.
Some time ago on the blog, I discussed issues related to arbitration in sports, pointing out the regulations applicable to football (here). I talked about the procedure for appointing an arbitrator and the jurisdiction of the court to hear specific types of cases. In today's article, I will explain the procedure in proceedings before the Football Arbitration Tribunal.
Despite many similarities to the rules of civil proceedings before ordinary courts, proceedings before the Football Arbitration Tribunal have their differences. The procedural matters are governed by Resolution No. II/25 of December 12, 2012, of the Polish Football Association Board adopting the Regulations of the Football Arbitration Tribunal. The first difference is the right of the parties to appoint one of three arbitrators who will adjudicate the case in a 3-person panel. Therefore, the party filing a claim with the PZPN Football Arbitration Tribunal should indicate its chosen arbitrator and a substitute arbitrator, in case the first one cannot adjudicate the case. The opposing party also has the right to appoint the second arbitrator.
The arbitrators chosen by the parties then select the third arbitrator, who will preside over the adjudicating panel. However, if a party fails to appoint an arbitrator in the claim and does not do so within the time limit set by the Arbitration Tribunal, the tribunal will then, on behalf of the party, select an arbitrator. The list of tribunal arbitrators for the years 2012-2016 is available here.
Similar to lawsuits filed in civil proceedings before ordinary courts, a copy of the claim filed with the PZPN Football Arbitration Tribunal must be provided to the opposing party. A difference from the regulations in the Code of Civil Procedure is that in addition to the parties' addresses, the claim must include contact phone numbers and email addresses of the parties, which undoubtedly can expedite the proceedings.
A party may act independently or through a representative in the proceedings. A natural person's representative may be a lawyer, legal advisor, co-party to the dispute, licensed football manager, parents, spouse, descendants, siblings, or individuals in a guardianship relationship. On the other hand, a legal entity's representative may be a lawyer, legal advisor, or authorized employee or official. The issue of representation by a licensed football manager and official also requires clarification. Referring to the first mentioned individuals, it should be noted that licenses for managerial activities have already been abolished, and currently, individuals engaged in intermediary activities related to football transfers only need to be registered in the system (more here).
In this context, it would probably be appropriate to state that the outdated provision refers specifically to intermediaries registered in the system for a given season. There is also a question as to whether a legal entity registered as an intermediary could be the representative of a natural person, given that all the others mentioned in the provision are natural persons with the right to represent (excluding the configuration where the co-party to the dispute is a legal entity)? In my opinion, the court would require the designation of a specific natural person, although this is not explicitly stated in the provision.
The term "official" has not been defined in the resolution. Therefore, it seems appropriate to refer to the definition contained in the PZPN Statute, according to which an official is a member of the authorities, jurisdictional bodies, and advisory boards of the PZPN, WZPN, their member organizations, professional leagues, or football clubs.
Regarding the proceedings themselves, they do not differ significantly from civil proceedings. However, it is worth noting that the proceedings are not subject to preclusion of evidence, which means that pieces of evidence can be submitted during the course of the proceedings without any obstacles, with the only reservation that the later submission of evidence may result in increased costs of the proceedings and be classified as delaying tactics.
The PZPN Football Arbitration Tribunal resolves the case by issuing a decision, which, along with the reasoning, is delivered to each party. Each party may request a re-examination of the case within a 14-day period with a 5-member panel. In this case, each party selects two arbitrators to resolve the case, who then select a fifth arbitrator (the super-arbitrator). The Adjudicating Panel may disregard new facts and evidence if the party could have presented them in the proceedings before the three-member Adjudicating Panel, unless the need to refer to them arose later.
What are the costs of proceedings before the Football Arbitration Tribunal?
The costs of proceedings before the PZPN Football Arbitration Tribunal are similar to those of proceedings before ordinary courts. When filing a lawsuit in a civil court for a monetary claim, as a rule, a court fee is required, amounting to 5% of the claimed amount. Regarding the Football Arbitration Tribunal, the costs are as follows:
In monetary cases, the entire relative entry fee is as follows:
up to 30,000 PLN – 6%, but not less than 600 PLN;
from 30,001 PLN to 60,000 PLN – 5%;
from 60,001 PLN to 120,000 PLN – 4%;
above 360,001 PLN – 2%;
For written submissions in cases concerning non-property rights or in property cases where the value of the subject matter cannot be determined at the time of its initiation, the Secretary of the Football Arbitration Tribunal determines a temporary entry fee. The temporary entry fee is set between 600 PLN and 1,000 PLN. In addition to the entry fee, the plaintiff is obliged to pay a one-time registration fee of 300 PLN, which is non-refundable.
As stipulated in the Football Arbitration Tribunal's regulations, the Adjudicating Panel determines in the arbitration award the final fees payable to the Football Arbitration Tribunal and the extent to which one party is to reimburse the other party for the costs and expenses incurred. If both parties have succeeded only in part of their claims, the Adjudicating Panel may order a division or mutual cancellation of costs. Therefore, a similar principle applies as in civil proceedings before ordinary courts, namely the principle of liability for the outcome of the process.
The losing party is therefore obliged to reimburse the costs of the proceedings to the winning party. These costs include entry fees, advance payments for expenses 1)if a party requests the presentation of expert opinion evidence or conducts activities outside the court's premises, they are obliged to pay an advance for these expenses, and the costs of representation, but only if the party was represented by a lawyer or legal advisor. The amount of the representation costs is determined by the Adjudicating Panel, bearing in mind that regardless of the content of the agreement between the party and the representative, the reimbursement of representation costs cannot exceed 5,000 PLN for cases heard by a 3-member panel and 3,000 PLN for cases heard by a 5-member panel.
What Comes Next?
The question naturally arises: does the ruling of the arbitration court give the winning party the actual possibility to enforce its claim? Absolutely. Firstly, a ruling issued by the arbitration court can be granted enforceability (in cases involving assets suitable for execution) by a common court at the request of the party. This means that the ruling of the arbitration court, along with the enforceability clause, constitutes an enforceable title, entitling the party to enforcement, and thus, to refer the matter to a bailiff. Furthermore, the Disciplinary Regulations and other provisions of the PZPN contain regulations that make evading payment of the amount resulting from the ruling of the Football Arbitration Tribunal particularly burdensome.
For example, in the licensing process, a club is obliged to demonstrate that it does not have overdue obligations resulting from final rulings of the Football Arbitration Tribunal. Failure to meet this condition may result in the PZPN Club Licensing Commission imposing penalties on the club, including transfer bans and point deductions. A player who evades the execution of a ruling of the Football Arbitration Tribunal may even face temporary disqualification.
In summary, the proceedings before the PZPN Football Arbitration Tribunal do not differ dramatically from proceedings conducted before ordinary courts, and the PZPN regulations additionally secure the enforceability of the rendered judgments.
Foto: Yuki Yaginuma via Foter.com / CC BY-ND