Schedule 13: the Financial Services and Markets Tribunal
829.This Schedule makes provision further to that contained in Part IX as to the constitution and operation of the Tribunal.
Paragraph 2: President
830.This paragraph requires the Lord Chancellor to select one of the members of the panel of chairmen, with qualifications as specified in paragraph 2(5), to be the President of the Tribunal. Apart from his general responsibility for the Tribunal’s functions under paragraph 2, it is the President’s responsibility under paragraph 7 to establish standing arrangements for the selection of panel members to sit on the Tribunal to hear particular cases. The standing arrangements must provide for the selection of at least one member of the panel of chairmen in each reference to the Tribunal, but may in addition provide for the selection other members of either panel. The Tribunal is empowered to appoint experts to assist it where necessary under paragraph 7(4). Paragraph 2 gives the Lord Chancellor the power to appoint a Deputy President, in addition to a President. If appointed, the Deputy President is to have such functions in relation to the Tribunal as the President may assign to him, and he is able to exercise any function of the President where the President is absent or otherwise unable to act.
Paragraph 3: Panels
831.This paragraph requires the Lord Chancellor to appoint the members of two panels, defined in paragraph 1 as the “panel of chairmen” and the “lay panel”, from which members of the Tribunal for a particular case will be drawn. Members of the former must have appropriate legal qualifications as specified in paragraph 3(2), at least one being suitably qualified in Scotland.
Paragraph 4: Terms of office
832.This paragraph provides that the terms of office of the panel members (including the President and any Deputy President) are to be determined by the terms on which they are appointed by the Lord Chancellor. The Lord Chancellor is also to have the power to remove them on grounds of incapacity or misbehaviour. The President and panel members may resign at any time, and they may be reappointed at the end of their terms. Paragraph 5 gives the Lord Chancellor similar powers to determine the remuneration of such persons and gives the Lord Chancellor the power to retain and pay administrative staff to support the Tribunal and to meet other expenses.
Paragraphs 8 to 10: Sittings and procedure
833.This paragraph indicates some of the matters concerning the conduct of cases referred which may be determined by rules made by the Lord Chancellor under section 132. As section 132(4) provides, this list does not limit the Lord Chancellor’s powers. Under paragraph 8, the Tribunal must sit at such times and in such places as the Lord Chancellor may direct. Paragraph 10 enables the President of the Tribunal to give directions as to the practices and procedures to be followed by the Tribunal.
Paragraph 11: Evidence
834.This paragraph sets out the powers of the Tribunal to require people to attend and give evidence, or produce documents, and makes it a criminal offence not to comply without reasonable excuse. The statutory maximum fine for which a person can be liable on summary conviction is currently £5,000.
Paragraph 12: Decisions of Tribunal
835.Under this paragraph the Tribunal may reach a decision unanimously or by majority, but must indicate which was the case in the document which it is obliged to issue setting out its decision. This document must include a statement of its reasons, and a copy must be sent to each party to the reference.
Paragraph 13: Costs
836.The Tribunal will have discretion under paragraph 13 to award costs against any party to its proceedings where the Tribunal considered that the party concerned had acted vexatiously, frivolously or unreasonably. It will also have specific power to award costs against the Authority where it considers the Authority’s decision was unreasonable.