CAS 2019 A 6677
CAS · Football (FIFA / CAS) · Switzerland · 10 Nov 2020
Why it matters
This award clarifies that interlocutory decisions on challenges to FIFA Ethics Committee members are not separately appealable to CAS; such challenges must be raised in an appeal against a final decision on the merits. It reinforces the principle that internal association proceedings lack the procedural rigour of court or arbitration proceedings, and that parties must exhaust internal remedies before CAS.
Summary
Dr Markus Kattner, a former FIFA employee, was subject to ethics proceedings for alleged violations of the FIFA Code of Ethics. He challenged all members of the Ethics Committee for lack of independence and impartiality, and also contested the applicability of the FCE and the Ethics Committee's jurisdiction over him. The Chairman of the FIFA Appeal Committee rejected his challenge. Kattner appealed this interlocutory decision directly to CAS, also seeking provisional measures to stay the ethics proceedings. FIFA objected to CAS jurisdiction and admissibility, arguing that the decision was not a final decision appealable under Article 58 FIFA Statutes. The CAS Panel bifurcated the proceedings to first decide jurisdiction and admissibility. The Panel held that the decision on a challenge to Ethics Committee members is not a final decision; it is a procedural measure that can only be challenged together with a final decision on the merits. Drawing an analogy with challenges to CAS arbitrators decided by ICAS, which are not separately appealable, the Panel found that Kattner must wait until the Adjudicatory Chamber issues a final decision before appealing. The Panel also noted that Kattner had not exhausted internal remedies regarding jurisdiction and applicability of the FCE. Consequently, the appeal was declared inadmissible, and the application for provisional measures was dismissed. The costs were borne by Kattner, and each party bore its own legal fees.
The detail
Parties: Markus Kattner v. FIFA
Case number: CAS 2019 A 6677
Outcome: The appeal was declared inadmissible; the application for provisional measures was dismissed; costs borne by Appellant; each party bears own legal fees.
Applicable law: FIFA Code of Ethics (FCE), FIFA Statutes, CAS Code of Sports-related Arbitration (2019 edition), Swiss law
Issues in play: The case concerned whether an interlocutory decision on a challenge to Ethics Committee members is appealable to CAS, and whether the FCE applied to a former FIFA employee.
Read the full decision at Court of Arbitration for Sport (football, via FIFA) ↗
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