Assignment to arbitrator

(a) Parties may stipulate to use a private arbitrator or arbitrators who are not on the panel of arbitrators assigned to the program, or who are on the panel but who have agreed to serve on a private basis. Such stipulations must be made and filed with the clerk of the court no later than the date set for the return of the arbitration selection list and may require the use of any alternative dispute resolution procedure to resolve the dispute. The stipulation must include an affidavit that is signed and verified by the arbitrator expressing his or her willingness to comply with the timetables set forth in these rules. Failure to file a timely stipulation shall not preclude the use of a private arbitrator, but may subject the dilatory parties to sanctions by the commissioner or the arbitration judge. (b) Any and all fees or expenses related to the use of a private arbitrator, or the use of any other alternative dispute resolution procedure, shall be borne by the parties. (c) Unless a request for exemption is filed, the commissioner or the arbitration judge shall serve the two adverse appearing parties with identical lists of five arbitrators selected at random from the panel of arbitrators assigned to the program. (1) Thereafter, the parties shall, within 14 days, file with the clerk of the court either a private arbitrator stipulation and affidavit or each party shall file the selection list with no more than two names stricken. (2) If both parties respond, the commissioner or the arbitration judge shall appoint an arbitrator from among those names not stricken. (3) If only one party responds within the 14-day period, the commissioner or the arbitration judge shall appoint an arbitrator from among those names not stricken. (4) If neither party responds within the 14-day period, the commissioner or the arbitration judge will appoint one of the five arbitrators. (5) If there are more than two adverse parties, two additional arbitrators per each additional party shall be added to the list with the above method of selection and service to apply. For purposes of this rule, if several parties are represented by one attorney, they shall be considered as one party. (d) If a request for exemption is filed and denied, the commissioner or the arbitration judge shall, within 7 days after the time has expired for filing an objection to the commissioner’s or the arbitration judge’s denial of the request, or within 7 days after the district judge’s decision on such an objection, serve the parties with identical lists of five arbitrators as provided in subsection (c) of this rule. (e) Where an arbitrator is assigned to a case and additional parties subsequently appear in the action, the additional parties may object to the arbitrator assigned to the case within 14 days of the date of the party’s appearance in the action. Objections must be in writing, state specific grounds, be served on all other appearing parties, and be filed with the clerk of the court. The commissioner or arbitration judge shall review the objections and render a decision. The commissioner’s decision may be appealed to the district judge to whom the case is assigned or, in a district with an arbitration judge, may be submitted for rehearing. The objection or request for rehearing shall be filed with the clerk of the court within 14 days of the date of service of the commissioner’s or arbitration judge’s decision. (f) If the selection process outlined above fails for any reason, including a recusal by the arbitrator, the commissioner shall repeat the process set forth in subsection (c) of this rule to select an alternate arbitrator. [Added; effective July 1, 1992; amended; effective July 26, 2024.]