arbitrator update - National Futures Association

arbitrator update
Welcome to the Fall 2004 / Winter 2005 edition of the
Arbitrator Update! In an effort to keep your inbox
clear of unnecessary clutter, we have scaled back the
Update from a quarterly publication to a bi-annual
affair. We’ve also made a number of changes and
improvements to the newsletter since our last issue,
but one thing that hasn’t changed is our commitment
to providing you with a source of timely information
and answers to your questions about NFA
Arbitration.
Some of the features you’ll find in this issue include:
• a current roster of the Arbitration staff to help you
put a face with the voice on the other end of the
line, including whom you need to contact for
specific needs (page 2);
• a reminder about fulfilling your training requirement
(page 3);
• “Glad You Asked That” – a look at common
questions that arise in arbitration (page 3);
• a number of recent statistics (page 3); and
• a feedback section, asking for your opinion on a
variety of topics, from pre-hearing conference calls
to foreign exchange disputes to underserved areas
of the country (page 4).
Above all, we hope you continue to find the Update to
be an enjoyable and informative read. Just as NFA
Arbitration owes much of its success to the quality of
our arbitrators, likewise the Arbitrator Update is only
worthwhile if it clearly addresses your questions and
concerns. Therefore, as always, we encourage you to
contact us with any comments about the newsletter or
the program in general.
NATIONAL FUTURES ASSOCIATION
fall 2004 / winter 2005

section one
meet the arbitration staff
Judy Jenks
Arbitrator Coordinator
phone: 312-781-1431 fax:312-658-4103
email:jjenks@nfa.futures.org
200 West Madison, Suite 1600 ~ Chicago, Illinois 60606
Heather Cook
Manager
phone: 312-781-1481 fax:312-781-7661
email:hcook@nfa.futures.org
200 West Madison, Suite 1600 ~ Chicago, Illinois 60606
Why you might talk to Judy:
As NFA’s Arbitrator Coordinator for the
past year and a half, many of you
have already spoken to Judy when
you were assigned to a case. Judy
also maintains NFA’s arbitrator roster
with current and relevant information
that is useful when appointing you to
a case.
Why you might talk to Heather:
Occasionally arbitrators may have a
suggestion or a question concerning
NFA’s procedures and policies. As a
ten year veteran of NFA, Heather can
handle all of these inquiries. In this
small department, you may even find
Heather as the Case Administrator on
a case to which you are assigned.
Page 2
Mark Loehrke
Case Administrator
phone: 312-781-1480 fax:312-781-7666
email:mloehrke@nfa.futures.org
200 West Madison, Suite 1600 ~ Chicago, Illinois 60606
Liz Sheridan
Case Administrator
phone: 312-781-1479 fax:312-781-7659
email:esheridan@nfa.futures.org
200 West Madison, Suite 1600 ~ Chicago, Illinois 60606
Angela Haggerty
Assistant Arbitrator Coordinator
phone: 312-781-1474 fax:312-781-7664
email:ahaggerty@nfa.futures.org
200 West Madison, Suite 1600 ~ Chicago, Illinois 60606
Why you might talk to Mark or Liz:
After Judy has appointed you to a
case and has sent you the relevant
pleadings, you may have additional
questions regarding the parties or
issues. Mark or Liz will be able to
answer any specifics regarding the
claim and will also schedule and
conduct the pre-hearing conference
call. Throughout the course of the
case, the Case Administrator will be
your point person for any inquiries.
Mark or Liz can guide you through
issuing the award, including questions
as to what type of damages can be
assessed, or answering questions
related to motions, orders, or any
other issues concerning the claim.
Why you might talk to Angela:
In addition to helping administer NFA’s
in-house mediation program, Angela
also helps Judy update our arbitrator
roster and ensures that all arbitrators
have completed training. Because
Angela sends out information packages
to potential arbitrators and is
responsible for adding new arbitrators
to our roster, many of you may have
talked to Angela when you first
became an NFA arbitrator.

ack to school
reminder -
arbitrator
training
With schools recently back in session,
this is an appropriate time to remind
you of your arbitrator training obligation.
NFA expects its arbitrators to have
participated in an accepted training
course within the past three years.
There is no need to wait on the corner
for the big yellow bus, however, as NFA
offers a number of convenient alternatives
for completing your training.
One of the easiest ways to fulfill this
requirement is to complete NFA’s
Arbitrator Training CD. This specially
developed course can be completed on
your computer in about an hour and deals
with general issues in arbitration as well
as specific NFA matters. Once you’ve
reviewed the material and taken the quiz,
you can simply fax or email your results
to NFA. For those who prefer the personal
touch of an in-person training
session or have already completed the
CD and are looking for more in-depth
information, NFA hopes to once again
offer Arbitrator Training Forums featuring
NFA attorneys and staff in the near future.
Keep an eye on future Update editions for
dates and cities for these sessions.
Finally, if you have recently completed
training for another arbitration forum, such
as NASD, NYSE, or AAA, you may send
those results to NFA in lieu of attending
an NFA forum or completing the NFA CD.
Whatever method you choose, you will
be better prepared for the issues that
arise in your cases by completing some
form of training.
glad you asked that...
section two
Q. I am the chairperson of an arbitration panel that has
ordered an NFA Member to produce certain documents
in discovery. The Member has not complied with the
order. What can the panel do?
A. If the Member is a party, the panel can impose sanctions
under Section 8(d) of the Code or Section 7(d) of
the Member Rules, including rendering an award
against the Member if the conduct is particularly egregious.
Furthermore, the panel doesn’t need an order
to compel before imposing sanctions if the Member’s
conduct is clearly in bad faith (e.g., refusing to provide
copies of documents on the automatic exchange list
without a good reason) and/or for the purpose of delay.
If the Member is not a party, the panel can ask the
Case Administrator to refer the complaint to the Compliance
Department as a violation of CR 2-5. (You can
also refer it to Compliance even if the Member is a
party, but discovery sanctions should normally be
sufficient.)
did you know?
Over two-thirds of cases take place in Illinois, Indiana,
Texas, Florida, New York and California. Due to this
high concentration of cases in only a handful of
states, arbitrators who do not live in or near these
areas may not hear from us to serve very often.
Our turn-around time remains steady at 6.7 months.
NFA changed our rules to begin accepting claims
involving retail off-exchange foreign currency (Forex) -
related disputes in December 2003. Since that time,
24% of all new claims filed have involved Forex.
Page 3

We Want to Hear From You!
Pre-Hearing Conference
Call
If you have served for NFA in the past
year, you may have noticed that NFA
now schedules a pre-hearing conference
call with the parties and arbitrators in
certain cases. Typically during this call
the parties and arbitrators will schedule
hearing dates and discuss any
outstanding discovery issues between
the parties. In some cases, the
arbitrators may also decide other
pending pre-hearing motions.
NFA would like to know your opinion of
these calls. Do you find them useful?
Have they helped to settle issues
between contentious parties? Would
you prefer that we not schedule a prehearing
call but just use mail-in calendars
to schedule the hearing?
Please let us know your opinion by
e-mailing any of the staff members or
writing to us at our mailing address.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Forex
As mentioned earlier, NFA’s rules
changed in December 2003 so that we
can accept claims involving Forexrelated
disputes. As a result, NFA is
beginning to receive claims involving
Forex-related disputes with increasing
frequency, and we are looking for
qualified arbitrators who are familiar with
these transactions.
Please notify Judy if you would feel
comfortable presiding over a Forex
claim, or if you can recommend any
potential arbitrators who have
experience in this fast-growing area.
Seattle, Memphis,
Nashville, Indianapolis,
Denver, Houston
Do you know anyone in these cities who
would be interested in becoming an NFA
arbitrator? Because we do not like to
call on people to serve too often, NFA
would like to increase its roster of
potential arbitrators. NFA particularly
needs qualified Member arbitrators in all
of these cities. If you can recommend a
friend or a colleague in any of these
metropolitan areas to add to our roster,
please forward his or her name and
address to Judy.
NFA is always interested in strengthening
our roster in all areas of the country.
Please contact Judy if you think you
know someone interested in becoming
an arbitrator.
National Futures Association
Arbitration Department
200 West Madison Street, Suite 1600
Chicago, Illinois 60606-3447
800-621-3570
www.nfa.futures.org
First Class Mail
U.S. Postage
PAID
Chicago, IL
Permit No. 6221