The Railway Pensions (Protection and Designation of Schemes) Order 1994

Arbitration

13.—(1) Any dispute arising under Parts I to IV of this Order between—

(a) a protected person, or a person with the right to continue to participate in the joint industry scheme under article 11, and a person falling within paragraph 7(2) (employers, persons contributing as employers, trustees and persons with power to amend or wind up the scheme) of Schedule 11; or

(b) more than one person who falls within paragraph 7(2) of that Schedule;

shall be referred to arbitration under the provisions of this article.

(2) Where a dispute arises between two or more of the persons mentioned in paragraph (1), any of those persons shall give to the other or others a notice in writing which—

(a) specifies the matters in dispute;

(b) refers to this article; and

(c) nominates a person who is willing to act as arbitrator of the dispute;

and for the purposes of this article a person who gives a notice under this paragraph shall be “the applicant” and the person or persons to whom it is given shall be “the defendant”.

(3) The defendant may, within 28 days of a notice being given to him under paragraph (2), give to the applicant a notice in writing which—

(a) states that he approves as the arbitrator of the dispute the person nominated by the applicant; or

(b) nominates an alterantive person who is willing to act as arbitrator of the dispute;

and if the defendant fails to give such notice within that period the arbitrator nominated by the applicant shall act as the arbitrator of the dispute in question.

(4) If, within 56 days of the notice being given under paragraph (2), the applicant and the defendant have not agreed who should be nominated as the arbitrator of the dispute and no arbitrator has been appointed under paragraph (3), either of them may request the person prescribed by paragraph (5) or (6) to appoint the person who is to act as the arbitrator of the dispute.

(5) Subject to paragraph (6), the person prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (4) shall be—

(a) where the principal residence of the applicant is in Scotland, the President of the Law Society of Scotland;

(b) where the principal residence of the applicant is in Northern Ireland, the President of the Law Society of Northern Ireland; and

(c) in any other case, the President of the Law Society of England and Wales.

(6) Where more than one request is made under paragraph (4) in relation to a dispute between the same parties which concerns the same, or substantially the same, issues—

(a) if those requests are made to the President of one Law Society, the prescribed person shall be the President of that Law Society; and

(b) if those requests are made to the Presidents of more than one Law Society, the prescribed person shall be the first of those Presidents to receive one of those requests.

(7) If after applying the provisions of paragraphs (5) and (6) there remains doubt as to who is the prescribed person, the prescribed person shall be the President of the Law Society of England and Wales.

(8) Where in relation to any dispute the President of a Law Society is the prescribed person by virtue of paragraph (6)(b) or (7), before selecting the arbitrator who is to act in relation to the dispute in question he shall consult each other President of a Law Society who has received a request which relates to the same dispute.

(9) Where an arbitrator has been appointed to determine more than one dispute which relates to the same issue (whether those disputes are between the same or different parties) he may, if all of those parties consent, hear and determine those disputes together as if they were a single reference.

(10) In the application of this article to Scotland, references to an “arbitrator” shall be construed as references to an “arbiter”.