The nature of sport is such that quick resolution of disputes and disciplinary cases is essential, as an award would have little or no effect if not rendered quickly. Sports competitions and tournaments will not be put on hold to await the outcome of disputes or other legal processes, and such cases must be resolved quickly and fair. CAS has established fast track procedures that aims to reduce the time of a procedure in cases where that is essential, to meet these challenges.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) offers resolution of sports-related disputes through arbitration. This article describes the role of the arbitrator in cases dealt with by CAS, the procedures that the parties will need to be aware of, including the parties’ possibility to choose arbitrators from the CAS list of arbitrators.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has the competence to settle sport-related disputes. CAS was created by The International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1983 and is located in Lausanne, Switzerland. CAS also has branch offices in New York and Sydney, and at major sports events, such as the Olympic Games, the football World Cup and the European Football Championships, ad hoc offices are created to deal with violations of regulations in the current sports event.

Nationally and internationally, sport has been given a high degree of autonomy. As long as the sport operates within a certain set of frames, the sport itself can decide which rules should apply in the field of sport and establish bodies that deal with violations of sports regulations and sports-related disputes. Sports-related disputes arising from a contract, e.g. related to player contracts, sponsorship contracts or media rights, may be processed by the various arbitration tribunals of the sport in question.