THE COURT OF ARBITRATION WILL BE AT THE XXX OLYMPIAD IN LONDON

19 July 2012

Lausanne, 19 July - The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will open an office in London in order to resolve all legal disputes which may arise during the Olympic Games.

The CAS is a permanent arbitration institution founded in 1984 and specialized in the resolution of sports law disputes. It has its headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, with decentralized offices in New York and Sydney and Alternative Hearing Centres in Abu Dhabi, Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur and Cairo. The CAS handles approximately 350 cases per year.

This special tribunal, called the CAS ad hoc Division has been in operation at previous editions of the Olympic Games since Atlanta 1996. Such a tribunal was also created on Commonwealth Games, the UEFA European Football Championships and the FIFA World Cup.

The CAS ad hoc Division in London will provide all participants in the Games with free access to justice rendered within time limits that keep pace with the competition.

The tribunal for the Olympic Games in London will be presided over by Judge Juan Torruella (Puerto Rico) and Mr Gunnar Werner (Sweden),and composed of twelve arbitrators chosen for their expertise in arbitration/sports law. Among them four European experts : Efraim Barak (Israel); Prof. Massimo Coccia (Italy); Mr Stuart McInnes (UK); Mr Martin Schimke (Germany).

The office in London will be headed by CAS Secretary General, Matthieu Reeb and will be operational from 17 July until 12 August.