SFT Rules On Limited Scope Of Review For Procedural Violations
In this recent football-related procedure the Appellant—represented by legal counsel—had sent its statement of appeal to the CAS by e-mail but failed to send it by courier within the granted time limit, invoking force majeure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The appeal was declared inadmissible by the CAS Division President. In the subsequent motion to set aside the CAS award, the SFT rejected the force majeure argument, considering that the Appellant was able to reply to a CAS submission by post one day after its receipt, and that there was also the possibility to file the submissions by electronic filing. The SFT dismissed the appeal recalling the very limited scope of review in case of non-compliance with the form requirements and applicable time limits. See also the judgment 4A_416/2020.
Note: This was originally published on SportsLegis, a specialised sports law practice run by Dr Despina Mavromati. The original can be found here.
An English translation of the judgment can be viewed below.
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- Tags: CAS Code | Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) | Dispute Resolution | Football | Sport | Swiss Federal Tribunal
Written by
Dr Despina Mavromati
Dr. Despina Mavromati is an attorney at the Swiss law firm BianchiSchwald and an arbitrator at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Shehas extensive experience in international sports law and arbitration. She represents athletes, clubs and federations and advises on regulatory and sports governance matters, including the recognition and enforcement of awards and freezing of assets in Switzerland. Despina has acted as counsel, co-counsel, expert or arbitrator in numerous sports arbitrations, involving contractual, governance, doping-related and other disciplinary and ethics matters. Recognized as a Thought Leader by Who’s Who Legal in Switzerland every year since 2018, “Despina Mavromati is “brilliant and accomplished” and “an amazing lawyer with immense knowledge and expertise when it comes to disputes before the CAS” (Who’s Who Legal 2023).