Admissibility & Eligibility

The admissibility of a Request for Inspection and the determination of its eligibility are two important steps in the Panel process. 

When the Panel receives a Request for Inspection, the Panel undertakes a technical analysis concerning its admissibility on several aspects of the Request. This analysis is used to determine whether the Request complies with the requirements of the Panel’s legal framework (the Panel’s Resolution and the Panel’s Operating Procedures) and would therefore be registered through the issuance of a Notice of Registration. No Request for Inspection can be processed by the Panel, or the Dispute Resolution Service, until the Panel has determined the steps laid out below are complete and the criteria met in compliance with the requirement of the Panel’s legal framework.

After the Panel registers a Request for Inspection, the eligibility phase commences. Management is given 21-business days to respond to the claims raised in the Request and, subsequently, the Panel has a further 21-business days to determine whether the Requesters and the Request for Inspection meet the eligibility criteria. If the Panel determines that the eligibility criteria are met, it considers whether the matters raised in the Request merit an investigation and makes a recommendation to the Board of Executive Directors.