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20 S.C. J. Int'l L. & Bus. 1 (2023-2024)
Dispute Resolution in the Badminton World Federation: Sui Generis Expert Determination?

handle is hein.journals/scjilb20 and id is 7 raw text is: SOUTH CAROLINA JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL LAW & BUSINESS DISPUTE RESOLUTION IN THE BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION: SUI GENERIS EXPERT DETERMINATION? Ilias Bantekas* Abstract The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has set up a poly-tiered dispute resolution mechanism to deal with alleged breaches of its institutional statutes. It calls these 'judicial' bodies even though they are not established by law. They consist of the Independent Hearing Panel (IHP) and the Sports Dispute Panel (SDP). The former entertains mostly governance-related disputes while the SDP enjoys jurisdiction for substantive sports disputes. The IHP also serves as an appellate forum against SDP decisions. Neither of these entities has been endowed with arbitral qualities and the BWF dispute settlement architecture is paradigmatic of expert determination. The two 'judicial' entities are complemented by a Referral officer who serves as sui generis prosecutor and who receives pertinent evidence from national confederations or the BWF (investigating parties). It is argued that while this represents a successful example of expert determination in a context with a relatively small caseload, the system itself would be better served by a self-contained arbitral tribunal, seated in an arbitration-friendly jurisdiction. 1. Introduction. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is by no means a newcomer to the international sports law and governance arena. It was established in 1934 by nine members, with its headquarters in London in the form of a nonprofit association.1 Its original name was International Badminton Federation (IBF). However, in 1981 the IBF merged with the World Badminton Federation (WBF), but it was not until 2006 that the current name was assumed, namely the BWF. Given the huge popularity of the sport in Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Thailand, and Korea, it was a natural consequence that the seat of the BWF would ultimately be relocated to Asia. The BWF is incorporated in Malaysia under the country's International Organizations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1992. The BWF was granted the status of an inter-governmental organization.2 This is a spectacular arrangement given that the BWF was not set up by states, and hence, as a matter of public international law, it does not qualify as an inter-governmental organization. This is a personalized privilege, which very much. Served as an incentive for the relocation of the BWF from the UK to Malaysia. In terms of governance, the Annual General Meeting (AGM) is the highest authority3 while the council undertakes the day-to-day business and other work of the BWF (albeit in doing so it cannot not override decisions of the AGM).4 The council conducts its work * Professor of Transnational Law, Hamad bin Khalifa University (Qatar Foundation) College of Law and Adjunct Professor of International Law, Georgetown University, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. 1 See BWF CONST. art. 1 (2023), htt s:/c--t-a, -,--fsport/docs/document-svstc 81/1400/140-/BWF°20 Constitution%20-%2OMay%022O23.pdf. For a history of the sport, see Jean-Yves Guillain, Badminton: An Illustrated History (Publibook, 2004); Bernard Adams, The Badminton Story (BBC Books, 1980). 2 Registration No PU A 363, available at: https://extranet.bwf.sport/docs/document-system/81/82/93/BWF%20- %20I0%20 Status%20in%20Malaysia%20 %20Gazette%2028%20January%202018.pdf 3 BWF CONST. art. 14, 15. 4Id. art. 19. VOL. 20.1 I

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