By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
The Basketball Arbitral Tribunal, the independent body officially recognized by FIBA, which provides resolution services for disputes between players, agents, coaches, and clubs through arbitration, has published a set of BAT COVID-19 Guidelines.
Given the extraordinary situation caused by the current COVID-19 pandemic and in order to provide greater legal certainty to the basketball community, the Guidelines have been issued by the BAT President Prof. Dr. Ulrich Haas, the BAT Vice-President Raj Parker, and all BAT Arbitrators. They are intended to provide actual and potential BAT users with guidance in proceedings and help facilitate amicable settlements within the basketball community.
COVID-19 Guidelines
Issued on 20 April 2020 by the
BAT President, Vice-President and Arbitrators
The world currently finds itself in an extraordinarily difficult situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the
measures taken by governments to palliate its effects and the consequences of both on businesses and
employees in all sectors of activity.
Inevitably, professional basketball has been significantly affected by the crisis, especially in that most
competitions have been suspended or even terminated early. This, in turn, raises legal issues regarding
contracts in professional basketball, in particular in employment relationships of players and coaches
with clubs. Many parties to contracts in basketball have approached BAT, or FIBA, in the past weeks to
inquire how such legal issues would be handled by BAT Arbitrators.
Of course, each case has to and will be judged on its merits by the respective BAT Arbitrator, taking into
account all relevant circumstances and deciding ex aequo et bono unless otherwise agreed by the
parties (Article 15 of the BAT Arbitration Rules). However, the BAT President, Vice-President and
Arbitrators have decided that the truly exceptional situation created by the COVID-19 pandemic calls for
an exceptional step on their part, with a view to providing the basketball community with greater legal
certainty, thereby also facilitating amicable settlements.
For this purpose, the BAT President, Vice-President and Arbitrators, having collectively discussed
pursuant to Article 16.1 of the BAT Arbitration Rules1 certain substantive issues that arise as a result of
the COVID-19 pandemic, set out in these Guidelines their shared views on what they would perceive to
be just and fair solutions, under the ex aequo et bono standard, to those substantive issues.
For the avoidance of any misunderstanding, five caveats must be made:
– First, these Guidelines are of a temporary nature only, aiming to address the consequences of
the COVID-19 crisis on contracts in basketball, in particular those consequences arising out of
domestic championships being suspended or terminated early as a result of the pandemic.
– Second, these Guidelines incorporate principles only, to which there may be exceptions
depending on the circumstances of the individual case (including, e.g., applicable public health
guidelines).
– Third, these Guidelines merely reflect a consensus reached by the BAT President, VicePresident and Arbitrators in their informal discussions on abstract legal issues. They are not
binding rules of mandatory application and, as a matter of course, they do not affect each
BAT Arbitrator’s liberty of decision in deciding an individual BAT case.
– Fourth, these Guidelines do not amend or substitute for the BAT Arbitration Rules or other rules
of procedure governing international arbitrations.
– Fifth, these Guidelines will be constantly reviewed and may be subject to adjustments
depending on relevant developments.