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The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) and IDRS Finding work for CIArb members It is important at the outset to have a clear understanding of what the Institute’s role and mission is in regard to its 12,000 members worldwide. As a Chartered and charitable professional body, CIArb’s primary object is to facilitate private dispute resolution worldwide. One of the ways to do this is to serve the public interest and provide public benefit by ensuring that the Institute’s professional membership is trained to appropriate standards, and that these standards are maintained through self regulated ‘policing’ of the profession. It has never been a function or purpose of the Institute to “offer references” or “find work” for its members. Were it to be considered by the Privy Council, or the Charity Commission, that the Institute existed primarily to further the personal interests of its members, CIArb’s Chartered and charitable status would be at risk. The Institute’s Presidential Panels The Institute has, for many years run three Presidential Panels: the Panels of Chartered Arbitrators, Civil and Commercial Mediators and Construction Adjudicators. Mediation and adjudication Members (MCIArb) may apply to join a Presidential Panel, after undertaking 3 mediations or adjudications in the last 3-5 years. A formal application process exists and this is managed through Karen Cheel in the Executive. If arbitration Fellows (FCIArb) are successful in their application for Chartered Arbitrator status (following a Peer Interview), this automatically includes membership of the Arbitration Presidential Panel. Presidential appointment process There are two types of requests received by the Institute for Presidential Panel appointments:
The administration of the appointment process is handled under contract by the Institute’s wholly-owned subsidiary company, IDRS Ltd (see below), who also maintain the database of Panel Members’ CVs (Panel Members will be aware of the new electronic database for the Panel Appointments Certificate Scheme for which they have just been invited to complete new, standard CVs. It is important, if they have not already done so, that all Panel Members complete all the relevant information required on the “Neutrals” database at www.neutrals.org.uk). When a request is received by the Institute for the President to appoint a third party neutral, IDRS will search the database of the relevant panel and usually select three suitable candidates who meet the criteria stated by the parties. This short list is sent to the Institute’s President who either selects the most appropriate person, or if none are considered suitable, requests a further search for a better match with the requirements of the case. Once appointed the President, the appointee and the parties are advised of the appointment. IDRS Ltd IDRS (The Company) is a wholly owned subsidiary of CIArb and is run independently by its own Board of Directors as a commercial operation. It was formed on 26 September 2006 in order that the consumer redress schemes and related service provider activities of the Institute could be transferred to it, thus removing both potential conflicts of interest with CIArb’s Chartered and charitable status, and fiduciary risks to the Trustees, while permitting the business transferred to IDRS to be carried on in a properly commercial manner. Full details of other services provided by IDRS e.g. dispute avoidance, can be found on the Company website www.idrs.ltd.uk IDRS (Scheme) Panels Since the Company’s formation, IDRS have focused on improving the administration and profitability of the consumer and commercial redress services (Schemes) they took over from CIArb, while bidding aggressively for new contracts in the sector. These Schemes are typically developed for a trade or regulatory body, offering bespoke Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) services tailored to resolve disputes involving the parent body or their members, or regulated companies and their business or consumer customers. Examples include ASTI (trav el), Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountants (Accountancy), CISAS (Communications), Hackney Homes (Local authority leasehold/tenant), Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme (operators under government contract), National Association of Funeral Directors (funeral services) and many more. The Company provides neutrals to deal with cases in these Schemes through panels experienced in the sector concerned. Many were taken over by the Company when the CIArb Schemes were transferred to it. From time to time the Company will advertise on the CIArb website for new scheme panel members, setting out the required level of experience, specific skills or expertise it needs and giving the case remuneration rates. The Institute has no role in the appointments procedure, either to the scheme panels, or to specific cases. Where it is not possible to run a profitable Scheme from the appointment of neutrals from the Scheme’s external Panels, or where a contract bid would not be competitive if only external panel neutrals were engaged, then the Company will use its own directly employed adjudicators, each of whom will have the required knowledge and experience of consumer adjudication and will be trained and qualified for the role. Appointments of these types are sometimes referred to as “scheme appointments”. The City Disputes Panel IDRS also operates The City Disputes Panel (CDP) which maintains a judicial panel and a specialist panel comprising City professionals and others with relevant experience. CDP appoints from those panels in response to client need. Supervision of the Presidential Panels and the Panels Management Group (PMG) of CIArb Until 2007, the PMG was responsible for the supervision of the consumer and commercial redress services run by CIArb but these are now fully owned and operated by IDRS Ltd. The Company manages and supervises its panels with the help of its Committee of Panel Convenors (the CPC). The current chairman of the CPC is Dr Mair Coombes Davies who also now serves as the liaison between the CPC and the PMG. The PMG’s responsibility has changed, to focus exclusively on the three Presidential Panels and any other appointments Panels and Schemes run by the Institute either centrally or by Branches. As a matter of policy, the Institute only provides appointment services and will not carry out any activity which can be described as that of a service provider. In order to bring the Presidential Panels in line with current best practice, and to demonstrate publicly that the holder of such a certificate is considered competent in the field of Private Dispute Resolution, a Panels Appointments Certificate Scheme has just been introduced. Once the Scheme has been fully implemented the Institute will consider tactics to raise the profile of the Presidential Panels. The PMG is also setting up a series of Peer Review Panels for each region, with senior practitioner members appointed directly by the PMG to provide the review process required for the re-issue of Panel Appointments Certificates and as a first instance body where complaints against members may need to be considered. Branch Panels UK In October 2008, the Board of Trustees agreed in principle that British branches may, with the approval of the Board of Trustees and the oversight of the PMG, form panels for the provision of arbitration, mediation or adjudication appointments in the local area of the branch. Such panels may provide a recently qualified member (subject to appropriate supervision) the opportunity to acquire the practical experience in acting as a neutral to enable them to gain the experience required for joining the Presidential Panels. This will need careful scrutiny to ensure the Institute’s credibility and professional standing is maintained. However, the Institute will not authorise Branch activities that compete with the activities of IDRS (see above). Outside the UK To date, branches outside the UK have been permitted to form panels, subject to prior authorisation by the Board of Trustees. This will continue to be the position but the PMG will be involved in approving and overseeing the general operation of branch panels subject to overall direction from the board of Trustees. How to get more appointments from panels If you are interested in expanding your work, you could:
As a general pointer, it would be useful for all members to work with their primary professions, to persuade parties to specify CIArb as the nominating body in dispute resolution clauses in as many contracts as possible. Another way to promote the Institute is to use your post-nominal letters and designatory logo devices wherever and whenever possible e.g. business cards, auto-signatures on emails, when registering to attend events, as speakers etc. Interesting facts and trends:
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