Sports Law Lunch & Learn: The CAS Code of Sports-related Arbitration

 Lunch & Learn with Prof. Antonio Rigozzi
(University of Neuchâtel Law School; Lévy Kaufmann-Kohler, Geneva)

The CAS Code of Sports-related Arbitration
Selected questions and first experiences with its 2013 edition

On 1st March 2013, a new version of the Court of Arbitration for Sport's Code of Sports-related Arbitration Rules (the CAS Code) came into force. This is the third revision of the Code's Arbitration Rules in the space of three years and, just like the previous ones, it has introduced significant amendments, with important consequences for CAS users. The amended provisions relate to both types of arbitration proceedings under the Code's Procedural Rules, i.e. the so-called Ordinary Arbitration Procedure and the Appeal Arbitration Procedure. The computation of time limits, the modalities for the filing of written submissions, the substantive and procedural conditions for the granting of provisional measures, the de novo nature of CAS appeals proceedings, and the charging and allocation of arbitration costs are among the aspects of the CAS Rules which have been affected by the latest revision of the Code.  

Since it was created in 1984, the Lausanne-based CAS has grown into the most effective forum for the resolution of all sports-related disputes, from doping and disciplinary cases to purely commercial matters. Up until the end of 2011, the CAS had handled more than 2,600 arbitration proceedings, including through its Ad Hoc Divisions, which have been set up for the Olympic Games and other major international sports competitions since 1996. The awards rendered by CAS Panels over the past three decades have gradually built an extensive body of jurisprudence, developing legal principles and rules that many view as the components of an autonomous set of norms, the lex sportiva. In short, the CAS is rightly considered, today, as the "world's supreme court of sports". The seat of all CAS arbitrations is Lausanne, in Switzerland, where many international sports federations are also domiciled, and the Swiss Federal Supreme Court is the only court of competent jurisdiction to hear appeals against CAS awards. In view of this, Swiss law and the Swiss legal system play an important role, at all levels, in and around CAS arbitral proceedings.

Antonio Rigozzi teaches Sports Law and International Arbitration at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. As the author of a seminal work on international sports arbitration, the co-author of one of the leading treatises on international arbitration in Switzerland, and a well-known practitioner in the field, Prof. Rigozzi is widely recognized as one of the foremost experts in international sports arbitration. He has recently co-authored the first article-by-article "commentary of the CAS Code's Procedural Rules" (in: Arroyo (Ed.), International Arbitration in Switzerland – A Practitioner's Guide, Chapter 5: Sports Arbitration, Kluwer Law International, 2013).

In this Lunch & Learn, Prof. Rigozzi will highlight the most important changes brought about by the 2013 revision of the Code, in particular from the perspective of parties acting before the CAS, focusing on the main practical and legal questions raised by such changes. The discussion will be of interest to practitioners who are active in sports dispute resolution, as well as academics and students looking to enhance their knowledge on the subject. 

Location: T.M.C. Asser Instituut. R.J. Schimmelpennincklaan 20-22, The Hague

Time: 11.30—13.30

Fee: regular € 25 / student € 15 - (Lunch included)

Registration*: Please send an e-mail with your name and organisational affiliation to conferencemanager@asser.nl, subject line “Registration Lunch & Learn Prof. Antonio Rigozzi”