The National Arbitration Forum Announces 2005 Updates to Procedural Rules and Fees.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The National Arbitration Forum's most recent steps are meant to further ensure fairness to both businesses and consumers.

The National Arbitration Forum announced today that it released updated arbitration procedural rules for cases filed on or after January 1, 2005. The National Arbitration Forum's Code of Procedure is the set of procedural rules that outline the process, schedules, and fees for every arbitration administered by the National Arbitration Forum.

Featured updates to the 2005 Code of Procedure include a provision to grant arbitrators the ability to value large claims early in the arbitration process and a provision for arbitrators to provide injunctive relief and restraining orders in business-to-business cases. The 2005 Code of Procedure allows consumers with large claims to request an arbitrator to rule on an arbitration filing fee amount that will best allow the consumer to vindicate his or her legal rights.

Revised injunctive relief provisions for 2005 are located in Rule 27. Under Rule 27, a party may seek a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction by requesting an expedited hearing, which will take place within forty-eight hours.

"Because NAF arbitrators must apply the substantive law, the courts have an opportunity to regularly review arbitration decisions," said Ed Anderson, managing director of the National Arbitration Forum. "This effectively allows the courts to set new standards for arbitration. When they do, we have an obligation to ensure that our Code of Procedure is up to date in light of changes in the law, and that it is fair to both consumers and businesses alike."

Courts have historically upheld the evenhandedness of the National Arbitration Forum's Code of Procedure, holding that it provides "the full range of remedies available under controlling law," that "all legal remedies and injunctive relief are available to the parties," and that "any relief available in a judicial forum would also be available in arbitration (administered by NAF)."

A complete copy of the National Arbitration Forum's Code of Procedure is available at: http://www.arb-forum.com/programs/code_new/2005_code.pdf

About the National Arbitration Forum

The National Arbitration Forum is one of the world's largest neutral administrators of alternative dispute resolution services, including arbitration and mediation. Representing a distinguished panel of over 1,500 attorneys and retired judges who know and apply the law objectively according to their respective jurisdictions, the National Arbitration Forum provides businesses and consumers alike with fair, reasonable, and impartial access to justice. Founded in 1986, the National Arbitration Forum administers more than 50,000 cases annually. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the National Arbitration Forum also has offices located in New Jersey and Los Angeles. Additional information is available at the National Arbitration Forum's Web site at www.arbitration-forum.com.