[Foundation-l] RfC: Global Arbitration Committee

[Milos Rancic]

After a couple of days of discussion, it has been concluded that
presently there is a sense to talk just about Dispute resolution
committee. Thus, I've made new RfC [1]. Feel free to join discussion
and add your ideas there.

[1] - http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Requests_for_comment/Dispute_resolution_committee

* * *

''For the proposal which lead to this one, see [[Requests for
comment/Global Arbitration Committee]].''

''Dispute resolution committee'' (DRC) should be the body which would
serve as arbitration committee for projects without arbitration
committees, not counting large communities which decided not to have
their own arbitration committees. DRC should also serve as a body for
dispute resolution which involves at least one whole community (or
majority of its contributors).

Feel free to [[Talk:Requests for comment/Dispute resolution
committee|discuss]] about it, as well as to edit this page by adding
your proposals.

== Rationale ==
During Wikimania 2010 in Gdansk [[stewards]] had meeting. They've
concluded that there are more and more issues all around Wikimedia
projects in which they have to make urgent decisions, which is
according to the [[Steward policy]], but the number of needed
decisions is above the comfortable limits. At the other side, as
stewards are not able to make any non-urgent decision, conflicts
remain unsolved.

Thus, the conclusion is that we need the body which would have mandate
to make decisions in conflict resolution, mostly related to the
projects which don't have their own arbitration committees or if it is
about a dispute which involves at least one whole community (or
majority of its contributors).

== Scope ==
This body would have next responsibilities:
* Dispute-resolution for the communities without arbitration
committees, not counting large communities which decided not to have
their own arbitration committees.
* Dispute-resolution which involves one or more communities as whole
(or as majority).

== Choosing members ==
Possible methods for choosing members:
* Wikimedia-wide elections.
* A group of stewards who are willing to volunteer for this purpose.
(This is the suggestion of one of the Board members.)
* Appointing the group by some other body.
* Wikimedia-wide election for most of the members, and two or three
stewards elected from and by the stewards (for fact-finding, etc.)
* ...

== Initial set of projects and opting out ==
* The first task of DRC would be to define affected projects and to
suggest it to the Board to approve it.
* DRC would be able to reconsider the set. However, any decision which
includes or excludes some project from the set affected by DRC should
be sanctioned by the Board. Before any decision of that type, DRC
would have to raise this issue at the relevant places for particular
project and globally.

== Decision-making process ==
* The second task of DRC would be to gather all positive experiences
from the existing arbitration committees and to define its own process
of making decisions.

== Other ideas ==

[[Category:Requests for comments]]