With only 15% of the cases using the alternatives, should the program be extended?
NYSE PILOT ON ARB SELECTION: A two-year pilot program at the New York Stock Exchange is scheduled to expire on July 31, 2002. This program, which details three alternatives that parties may use, instead of the staff appointment method, for selecting their arbitrators, was first put in place on August 1, 2000.
The staff appointment method (NYSE Rule 608) has continued to be the default procedure, but, if there is mutual consent, the parties may: (1) select their own method of selection or their own arbitrators; (2) use a random list selection procedure, which provides for two lists of nominees randomly selected from industry and public ranks to be sent to each party, with provision for a second set of lists, if necessary; or (3) use an enhanced list selection procedure, which mixes the nominee concept of list selection with the staff appointment concept of subjective versus random selection. Thus, the Exchange has arranged a variety of choices for parties making the most critical decision of all who will be their arbitrators to accomplish the process in optimal fashion.
Problem is, the last figures we heard indicated that only about 15% of parties elect one of the alternative processes. Does that mean the parties cannot achieve mutual consent very frequently (ed: well, people disagree on this question) Maybe, there is something wrong with the pilot that can be fixed or should it be scrapped? The Exchanges Arbitration staff will be reviewing those questions between now and the July 31 deadline and will be looking for comment or suggestions from arbitration participants. Should the pilot be allowed to expire? Should it be extended and, if so, should it be modified? Send an e-mail to your favorite NYSE Arbitration staff attorney. (ed: The provisions of the pilot are contained in the NYSE Arbitration Rules and can be viewed in isolation on the NYSE WebSite at http://www.nyse.com/pdfs/vspfsa.pdf.) (SAC Ref. No. 02-13-01)
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Mark Astarita is a nationally recognized securities attorney, who represents investors, financial professionals and firms in securities litigation, arbitration and regulatory matters, including SEC and FINRA investigations and enforcement proceedings.
He is a partner in the national securities law firm Sallah Astarita & Cox, LLC, and the founder of The Securities Law Home Page - SECLaw.com, which was one of the first legal topic sites on the Internet. It went online in 1995 and is updated daily with news, commentary and securities law related links.