One of the key recommedations of the Leveson inquiry was that a press regulator should set up an arbitration service.
To fulfil that requirement, the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) has launched a three-month consultation exercise with a view to setting up a pilot scheme.
It is seeking views on how it should go about the task of introducing an arbitration scheme to deal with civil legal disputes between members of the public and the press, notably over complaints about defamation and intrusions into privacy.
The idea behind such a service is to provide a quick and cheap way of solving legal disputes in order to avoid costly litigation. It would also prevent vexatious and frivolous claims.
Interested parties are being invited to come forward with their ideas. Ipso is particularly interested in solving several problems:
Should the scheme should be mandatory for publishers once they sign up to it? If so, they wouldn’t be able to choose to go to arbitration on a case by case basis.
Should there should be a cap on the level of award the arbitrator can make; should legal costs be recovered and, if so, how; should conciliation could be part of the process?
Should such a scheme be tailored to different industry sectors? And should there be timescales for arbitrated claims?
According to an Ipso press release, if it does decide to run a pilot scheme, it would then seek the agreement of the industry for a wider scheme.
It stresses that arbitration, should it be adopted, would not replace Ipso’s regulatory complaints handling process.
Sir Alan Moses, Ipso’s chair, said: “Arbitration is not just about reducing costs and delays associated with litigation, it is about widening access to justice for members of the public and is something I feel very strongly about.
“At the core of Ipso’s work is that we will support complainants who feel wronged by the press and this consultation asks for views on how an arbitration scheme could be part of that provision.
“I look forward to receiving responses from the public as well as the industry and commentators”.
The consultation will run until Monday 7 September. You’ll find the full consultation document here on the Ipso website.
