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			{{Short description\|Policies for the Arbitration Committee}}
	For long term use in non-emergency cases, these policies are provisional. As a result of the ] these policies are in effect on an at-least temporary basis for emergency cases.
			<noinclude>{{pp-semi-protected\|small=yes}}</noinclude>
			{{redirect\|WP:AP\|article probation\|Misplaced Pages:General sanctions\|attack pages\|Misplaced Pages:Attack page\|the Amusement Parks WikiProject\|Misplaced Pages:WikiProject Amusement Parks\|the autopatrolled userright\|Misplaced Pages:Autopatrolled}}
			{{policy\|WP:AP\|WP:ARBPOL\|subcategory=procedural\|textoverride='''This page documents a formally ratified English Misplaced Pages ].'''<br><div style="font-size:90%;">Any changes must be proposed through the ].</div>}}
			{{ArbCom navigation}}

			This policy governs the Arbitration Committee, arbitration proceedings and arbitration processes. It was ratified by the community on 13 June 2011 and last amended on 23 May 2023. An extension of the arbitration policy, for ] and ] permissions, is at ].
	== Jurisdiction ==

			Procedures that supplement and implement this policy are at ] and ].
	The arbitrators reserve the right to hear or not hear any dispute, at their discretion. The following are general guidelines which will apply to most cases, but the arbitrators may make exceptions. These guidelines may change over time:

			== The Arbitration Committee ==
	# The arbitrators will hear disputes that have been referred to it by the mediation committee.
	# Where a dispute has not gone through mediation, the arbitrators may refer the dispute to the mediation committee if it believes mediation is likely to help.
	# The arbitrators will occasionally request advice on whether to hear a particular dispute from Jimbo Wales.
	# The arbitrators will primarily investigate interpersonal disputes
	# The arbitrators will hear or not hear disputes according to the wishes of the community, where there is a consensus.
	# The arbitrators will not hear disputes where they have not been requested to arbitrate.

			{{anchor\|Scope}}
	== Rules ==
			=== Scope and responsibilities ===

			The Arbitration Committee of the English Misplaced Pages has the following duties and responsibilities:
	The arbitrators will judge cases according to the following guidelines, which they will apply with common sense and discretion, and an eye to the expectations of the community:
			# To act as a final binding decision-maker primarily for serious conduct disputes the community has been unable to resolve;
			# To hear appeals from blocked, banned, or otherwise restricted users;<ref group=note>The Arbitration Committee resolved by ] on 14 February 2024 to hear appeals from editors who are (a) blocked for reasons that are unsuitable for public discussion, or (b) blocked or banned by Arbitration and Arbitration Enforcement decisions. Examples of reasons that are unsuitable for public discussion include blocks (i) marked as an ], or (ii) based on CheckUser evidence, and where there exists disagreement between checkusers as to the interpretation of the technical evidence. It is expected that blocks marked as a ] are by default appealed on-wiki; however, the Arbitration Committee may hear appeals of such blocks if there are compelling reasons to hear an appeal in private.</ref>
			# To handle requests (other than self-requests) for removal of administrative tools;<ref group=note>Following a ] in July 2011, the community resolved that administrator accounts which had been inactive for over a year (defined as making "no edits or administrative actions for at least 12 months") may also be ] independent of the Committee.</ref>
			# To resolve matters unsuitable for public discussion for privacy, legal, or similar reasons;{{anchor\|scopeprivate}}
			# To approve and remove access to (i) ] and (ii) mailing lists maintained by the Arbitration Committee.

			=== Selection and appointment ===
	# Established Misplaced Pages customs and common practices
			Members of the Committee are appointed following ] organized and run by the community. Candidates must:
	# Misplaced Pages's "laws": terms of use, submission standards, bylaws, general disclaimer, and copyright license.
			# Meet the Wikimedia Foundation's ] and confirm in their election statement they will fully comply with the criteria; and
	# Sensible "Real world" laws
			# Disclose any alternate accounts in their election statements. ] accounts which have been declared to the Arbitration Committee prior to the close of nominations need not be publicly disclosed.
			In exceptional circumstances, the Committee may call interim elections, in a format similar to that of the regular annual elections, if it determines that arbitrator resignations or inactivity have created an immediate need for additional arbitrators.

			=== Conduct of arbitrators===
	Former decisions will not be binding on the arbitrators - rather, they intend to learn from experience.
			{{policy shortcut\|WP:ARBCOND}}
			Arbitrators are expected to:
			# Act with integrity and good faith at all times;
			# Respond promptly and appropriately to questions from other arbitrators, or from the community, about conduct which appears to conflict with their trusted roles;
			# Participate conscientiously in the Committee's activities and deliberations, advising the Committee of upcoming inactivity if that inactivity will likely last more than a week; and
			# Preserve in appropriate confidence the contents of private correspondence sent to the Committee and the Committee's internal discussions and deliberations.
			Any arbitrator who repeatedly or grossly fails to meet the expectations outlined above may be suspended or removed by Committee resolution supported by two-thirds of all arbitrators excluding:
			# The arbitrator facing suspension or removal, and;
			# Any inactive arbitrator who does not respond within 30 days to attempts to solicit their feedback on the resolution through all known methods of communication.

			=== Recusal of arbitrators ===
	== Outcomes ==
			{{policy shortcut\|WP:RECUSAL}}
			An arbitrator may ] from any case, or from any aspect of a case, with or without explanation and is expected to do so where they have a significant conflict of interest. Typically, a conflict of interest includes significant personal involvement in the substance of the dispute or significant personal involvement with one of the parties. Previous routine editor, administrator or arbitrator interactions are not usually grounds for recusal.

			An editor who believes an arbitrator should recuse will first post a message on the arbitrator's talk page asking the arbitrator to recuse and giving reasons. Should the arbitrator not respond, or not recuse, the user may refer the request to the Committee for a ruling. Requests for recusal after a case has entered the voting stage will not be granted, except in extraordinary circumstances.
	The initial solution to most problems will be to issue an Arbitration Decree. For example:

			=== Transparency and confidentiality ===
	* "User X, you are making unhelpful edits to article A. Stop it, and take a broader lesson from this as you edit other articles."
	* "User X, you are making personal attacks on a wide variety of pages. Don't do that, personal attacks are inappropriate."
	* "User X, limit your reverts to article A to one per day."
	* "User X. refrain from editing this group of articles."

			Committee deliberations are often held privately, though the Committee will make public detailed rationales for decisions related to cases, unless the matter is unsuitable for public discussion for privacy, legal or similar reasons. The Committee treats as private all communications sent to it, or sent by a Committee member in the performance of their duties.
	The second option will be to require that a user does not edit Misplaced Pages for a given time frame: up to thirty days to start with, up to a year in severe cases. These may be enforced by, for example, sysop blocks on IP addresses and usernames. Such bans may be appealed to Jimbo Wales, who retains the right to veto such decisions.

			=== Procedures and roles ===
	In due course, the arbitrators will review the possibility of additional software-based security measures, but will not request such features at the present time, relying instead on Decrees.

			The Committee may create or modify its procedures, provided they are consistent with its ]; and may form subcommittees or designate individuals for particular tasks or roles. Where appropriate, the Committee may invite community comment on intended changes prior to implementing them.
	== Transparency ==
	''to be written''

			The Committee maintains a ] to assist with the smooth running of its functions. The clerks' functions include the administration of arbitration cases and management of all the Committee's pages and subpages; enforcing Committee decisions; implementing procedures; and enforcing good standards of conduct and decorum on the Committee's pages.
	== Requests ==
	''to be written''

	== ~~Who~~ ~~takes part?~~ ==		== Arbitration proceedings ==
	''to be written''

	== ~~Trial~~ ==		=== Jurisdiction ===
	''to be written''

			The Committee has jurisdiction within the English Misplaced Pages.
	== Judgement ==
	''to be written''

			The Committee has no jurisdiction over: (i) official actions of the ] or its staff; (ii) Wikimedia projects other than the English Misplaced Pages; or (iii) conduct outside the English Misplaced Pages.
	== Emergency Session ==

			The Committee may take notice of conduct outside its jurisdiction when making decisions about conduct on the English Misplaced Pages if such outside conduct impacts or has the potential to impact adversely upon the English Misplaced Pages or its editors.
	The Arbitration committee will continue their deliberations towards a more permanent policy, and when they are finished, there will be an open community vote "yes or no" on he final policy.

			The Committee retains jurisdiction over all matters heard by it, including associated enforcement processes, and may, at its sole discretion, revisit any proceeding at any time.
	In the meantime, the arbitration committee will handle emergency cases that Jimbo Wales refers to them. It is understood by all that they are merely acting in Jimbo's stead now, so as to begin the transfer of power in an orderly and timely fashion.

			=== Requesting arbitration ===
	There being 11 members of the committee currently, the voting procedure for the emergency session is as follows:

			Requests for arbitration must be presented in the manner designated by the Committee. The Committee may accept or decline any matter at its sole discretion; it will take into account, but will not be bound by, the views of the parties to the request and other interested users.
	# An appeal to the arbitration committee will be officially heard upon referral by Jimbo and approval by any 4 committee members. That is, 4 votes to hear a case will result in the case being heard.

	# Upon those 4 votes, a final decision will be made within 1 week.
			=== Forms of proceeding ===
	# A quorum of the committee will consist of a majority of members, i.e. at least 6 members must vote within that week, or no decision is made, and no action is taken.
			; Standard proceedings{{anchor\|Standard proceedings}} : By default, hearings are public and follow the procedures published on the relevant arbitration pages.
	# When a quorum has been reached, then after 1 week is up, or after enough members have voted such that the conclusion is inevitable, the majority decision will be the arbitration committee decision.
			; Summary proceedings{{anchor\|Summary proceedings}} : Where the facts of a matter are substantially undisputed, the Committee may resolve the dispute by motion.
			; Private hearings{{anchor\|Private hearings}} : In exceptional circumstances, typically where significant privacy, harassment, or legal issues are involved, the Committee may hold a hearing in private. The parties will be notified of the private hearing and be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to what is said about them before a decision is made.
			; {{anchor\|appeals}}Appeals : Appeals by blocked, banned, or similarly restricted users are usually conducted by email.

			=== Participation ===

			Decisions are reached by a majority vote of active, non-recused arbitrators. An arbitrator whose term expires while a case is pending may remain active on that case until its conclusion. Newly appointed arbitrators may become active on any matter before the Committee with immediate effect from the date of their appointment.

			Statements may be added to case pages by any interested editor. Editors are expected to respond to statements about themselves; failure to do so may result in decisions being made without their participation. All editors are required to act reasonably, civilly, and with decorum on arbitration case pages, and may face sanctions if they fail to do so.

			=== Admissibility of evidence===

			In all proceedings, admissible evidence includes:
			# All Misplaced Pages edits and log entries, including deleted or otherwise hidden edits and log entries;
			# Edits and log entries from Wikimedia projects other than the English Misplaced Pages, where appropriate; and
			# Posts to ].

			Evidence from ] is admissible only with the express prior written consent of the Mediation Committee.<ref group=note>The Mediation Committee was disbanded on November 12, 2018 as a result of ].</ref>

			Evidence based on private communications (including, but not limited to, other websites, forums, chat rooms, IRC logs, email correspondence) is admissible only by prior consent of the Committee and only in exceptional circumstances.

			Evidence may be submitted privately, but the Committee normally expects evidence to be posted publicly unless there are compelling reasons not to do so. The Committee will decide whether to admit each submission of private evidence on its own merits and, if admitted, the evidence will be considered at a ].

			=== Temporary injunctions ===

			At any time between the request for a case being made and the closure of the case, the Committee may issue temporary injunctions, restricting the conduct of the parties, or users generally, for the duration of the case.

			=== Format of decisions ===

			Decisions are written in clear, concise standard English and usually: (i) outline the salient principles, (ii) make findings of fact, (iii) set out remedies and rulings, and (iv) specify any enforcement arrangements. Where the meaning of any provision is unclear to any arbitrator, the parties, or other interested editors, it will be clarified upon request.

			=== Policy and precedent ===

			The arbitration process is not a vehicle for creating new policy by fiat. The Committee's decisions may interpret existing policy and guidelines, recognise and call attention to standards of user conduct, or create procedures through which policy and guidelines may be enforced. The Committee does not rule on content, but may propose means by which community resolution of a content dispute can be facilitated.

			While the Committee will typically take into account its earlier decisions when deciding new cases, previous decisions do not create binding precedent. As community policies, guidelines and norms evolve over time, previous decisions will be taken into account only to the extent that they remain relevant in the current context.

			=== Appeal of decisions ===

			Any editor may ask the Committee to reconsider or amend a ruling, which the Committee may accept or decline at its discretion. The Committee may require a minimum time to have elapsed since the enactment of the ruling, or since any prior request for reconsideration, before reviewing it.

			== Ratification and amendment ==

			Once adopted by the Committee, this policy will undergo formal ratification through a community referendum and will enter into force once it receives majority support, with at least one hundred editors voting in favour of adopting it. Until this policy is ratified, the existing arbitration policy remains in effect.

			Amendments to this policy require an identical ratification process. Proposed amendments may be submitted for ratification only after being approved by a majority vote of the Committee, or having been requested by a petition signed by at least one hundred editors in good standing.

			{{anchor\|own_policies}}
			The Committee is responsible for formulating its own ] under this policy, which do not require ratification.

	== See also ==		== See also ==
			* ]
			* Arbitration policy (April 2004): ], ], ], ], ]
			* Arbitration policy update (June 2011): ], ]
			* Arbitration policy amendment (April 2019): ], ]
			* Arbitration policy amendment (May 2023): ], ]
			* ]

			== Notes ==
			{{reflist\|group=note}}

			]
	* ], ]
			]
			]
			]

Latest revision as of 01:41, 3 March 2024

Policies for the Arbitration Committee

"WP:AP" redirects here. For article probation, see Misplaced Pages:General sanctions. For attack pages, see Misplaced Pages:Attack page. For the Amusement Parks WikiProject, see Misplaced Pages:WikiProject Amusement Parks. For the autopatrolled userright, see Misplaced Pages:Autopatrolled.

This page documents a formally ratified English Misplaced Pages policy.
Any changes must be proposed through the formal amendment process.

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This policy governs the Arbitration Committee, arbitration proceedings and arbitration processes. It was ratified by the community on 13 June 2011 and last amended on 23 May 2023. An extension of the arbitration policy, for CheckUser and Oversight permissions, is at Misplaced Pages:Arbitration Committee/CheckUser and Oversight.

Procedures that supplement and implement this policy are at Misplaced Pages:Arbitration Committee/Procedures and Misplaced Pages:Arbitration Committee/Clerks/Procedures.

The Arbitration Committee

Scope and responsibilities

The Arbitration Committee of the English Misplaced Pages has the following duties and responsibilities:

To act as a final binding decision-maker primarily for serious conduct disputes the community has been unable to resolve;
To hear appeals from blocked, banned, or otherwise restricted users;
To handle requests (other than self-requests) for removal of administrative tools;
To resolve matters unsuitable for public discussion for privacy, legal, or similar reasons;
To approve and remove access to (i) CheckUser and Oversight tools and (ii) mailing lists maintained by the Arbitration Committee.

Selection and appointment

Members of the Committee are appointed following annual elections organized and run by the community. Candidates must:

Meet the Wikimedia Foundation's criteria for access to non-public personal data and confirm in their election statement they will fully comply with the criteria; and
Disclose any alternate accounts in their election statements. Legitimate accounts which have been declared to the Arbitration Committee prior to the close of nominations need not be publicly disclosed.

In exceptional circumstances, the Committee may call interim elections, in a format similar to that of the regular annual elections, if it determines that arbitrator resignations or inactivity have created an immediate need for additional arbitrators.

Conduct of arbitrators

Shortcut

WP:ARBCOND

Arbitrators are expected to:

Act with integrity and good faith at all times;
Respond promptly and appropriately to questions from other arbitrators, or from the community, about conduct which appears to conflict with their trusted roles;
Participate conscientiously in the Committee's activities and deliberations, advising the Committee of upcoming inactivity if that inactivity will likely last more than a week; and
Preserve in appropriate confidence the contents of private correspondence sent to the Committee and the Committee's internal discussions and deliberations.

Any arbitrator who repeatedly or grossly fails to meet the expectations outlined above may be suspended or removed by Committee resolution supported by two-thirds of all arbitrators excluding:

The arbitrator facing suspension or removal, and;
Any inactive arbitrator who does not respond within 30 days to attempts to solicit their feedback on the resolution through all known methods of communication.

Recusal of arbitrators

Shortcut

WP:RECUSAL

An arbitrator may recuse from any case, or from any aspect of a case, with or without explanation and is expected to do so where they have a significant conflict of interest. Typically, a conflict of interest includes significant personal involvement in the substance of the dispute or significant personal involvement with one of the parties. Previous routine editor, administrator or arbitrator interactions are not usually grounds for recusal.

An editor who believes an arbitrator should recuse will first post a message on the arbitrator's talk page asking the arbitrator to recuse and giving reasons. Should the arbitrator not respond, or not recuse, the user may refer the request to the Committee for a ruling. Requests for recusal after a case has entered the voting stage will not be granted, except in extraordinary circumstances.

Transparency and confidentiality

Committee deliberations are often held privately, though the Committee will make public detailed rationales for decisions related to cases, unless the matter is unsuitable for public discussion for privacy, legal or similar reasons. The Committee treats as private all communications sent to it, or sent by a Committee member in the performance of their duties.

Procedures and roles

The Committee may create or modify its procedures, provided they are consistent with its scope; and may form subcommittees or designate individuals for particular tasks or roles. Where appropriate, the Committee may invite community comment on intended changes prior to implementing them.

The Committee maintains a panel of clerks to assist with the smooth running of its functions. The clerks' functions include the administration of arbitration cases and management of all the Committee's pages and subpages; enforcing Committee decisions; implementing procedures; and enforcing good standards of conduct and decorum on the Committee's pages.

Arbitration proceedings

Jurisdiction

The Committee has jurisdiction within the English Misplaced Pages.

The Committee has no jurisdiction over: (i) official actions of the Wikimedia Foundation or its staff; (ii) Wikimedia projects other than the English Misplaced Pages; or (iii) conduct outside the English Misplaced Pages.

The Committee may take notice of conduct outside its jurisdiction when making decisions about conduct on the English Misplaced Pages if such outside conduct impacts or has the potential to impact adversely upon the English Misplaced Pages or its editors.

The Committee retains jurisdiction over all matters heard by it, including associated enforcement processes, and may, at its sole discretion, revisit any proceeding at any time.

Requesting arbitration

Requests for arbitration must be presented in the manner designated by the Committee. The Committee may accept or decline any matter at its sole discretion; it will take into account, but will not be bound by, the views of the parties to the request and other interested users.

Forms of proceeding

Standard proceedings: By default, hearings are public and follow the procedures published on the relevant arbitration pages.
Summary proceedings: Where the facts of a matter are substantially undisputed, the Committee may resolve the dispute by motion.
Private hearings: In exceptional circumstances, typically where significant privacy, harassment, or legal issues are involved, the Committee may hold a hearing in private. The parties will be notified of the private hearing and be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to what is said about them before a decision is made.
Appeals: Appeals by blocked, banned, or similarly restricted users are usually conducted by email.

Participation

Decisions are reached by a majority vote of active, non-recused arbitrators. An arbitrator whose term expires while a case is pending may remain active on that case until its conclusion. Newly appointed arbitrators may become active on any matter before the Committee with immediate effect from the date of their appointment.

Statements may be added to case pages by any interested editor. Editors are expected to respond to statements about themselves; failure to do so may result in decisions being made without their participation. All editors are required to act reasonably, civilly, and with decorum on arbitration case pages, and may face sanctions if they fail to do so.

Admissibility of evidence

In all proceedings, admissible evidence includes:

All Misplaced Pages edits and log entries, including deleted or otherwise hidden edits and log entries;
Edits and log entries from Wikimedia projects other than the English Misplaced Pages, where appropriate; and
Posts to official mailing lists.

Evidence from official mediation is admissible only with the express prior written consent of the Mediation Committee.

Evidence based on private communications (including, but not limited to, other websites, forums, chat rooms, IRC logs, email correspondence) is admissible only by prior consent of the Committee and only in exceptional circumstances.

Evidence may be submitted privately, but the Committee normally expects evidence to be posted publicly unless there are compelling reasons not to do so. The Committee will decide whether to admit each submission of private evidence on its own merits and, if admitted, the evidence will be considered at a private hearing.

Temporary injunctions

At any time between the request for a case being made and the closure of the case, the Committee may issue temporary injunctions, restricting the conduct of the parties, or users generally, for the duration of the case.

Format of decisions

Decisions are written in clear, concise standard English and usually: (i) outline the salient principles, (ii) make findings of fact, (iii) set out remedies and rulings, and (iv) specify any enforcement arrangements. Where the meaning of any provision is unclear to any arbitrator, the parties, or other interested editors, it will be clarified upon request.

Policy and precedent

The arbitration process is not a vehicle for creating new policy by fiat. The Committee's decisions may interpret existing policy and guidelines, recognise and call attention to standards of user conduct, or create procedures through which policy and guidelines may be enforced. The Committee does not rule on content, but may propose means by which community resolution of a content dispute can be facilitated.

While the Committee will typically take into account its earlier decisions when deciding new cases, previous decisions do not create binding precedent. As community policies, guidelines and norms evolve over time, previous decisions will be taken into account only to the extent that they remain relevant in the current context.

Appeal of decisions

Any editor may ask the Committee to reconsider or amend a ruling, which the Committee may accept or decline at its discretion. The Committee may require a minimum time to have elapsed since the enactment of the ruling, or since any prior request for reconsideration, before reviewing it.

Ratification and amendment

Once adopted by the Committee, this policy will undergo formal ratification through a community referendum and will enter into force once it receives majority support, with at least one hundred editors voting in favour of adopting it. Until this policy is ratified, the existing arbitration policy remains in effect.

Amendments to this policy require an identical ratification process. Proposed amendments may be submitted for ratification only after being approved by a majority vote of the Committee, or having been requested by a petition signed by at least one hundred editors in good standing.

The Committee is responsible for formulating its own processes and procedures under this policy, which do not require ratification.

Notes

The Arbitration Committee resolved by motion on 14 February 2024 to hear appeals from editors who are (a) blocked for reasons that are unsuitable for public discussion, or (b) blocked or banned by Arbitration and Arbitration Enforcement decisions. Examples of reasons that are unsuitable for public discussion include blocks (i) marked as an Oversight block, or (ii) based on CheckUser evidence, and where there exists disagreement between checkusers as to the interpretation of the technical evidence. It is expected that blocks marked as a CheckUser block are by default appealed on-wiki; however, the Arbitration Committee may hear appeals of such blocks if there are compelling reasons to hear an appeal in private.
Following a request for comment in July 2011, the community resolved that administrator accounts which had been inactive for over a year (defined as making "no edits or administrative actions for at least 12 months") may also be desysopped by a community process independent of the Committee.
The Mediation Committee was disbanded on November 12, 2018 as a result of an RfC.

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