Arbitration Committee
An Arbitration Committee (sometimes abbreviated as "ArbCom") is a small group of trusted users who serve as the last step of dispute resolution on some individual Wikimedia Foundation projects. Originally set up on the English Wikipedia by Jimmy Wales to take over his role in resolving complex disputes between users, Arbitration Committees are now used on approximately ten Wikipedia versions and the English Wikinews.
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Composition[edit]
Committees typically have five to fifteen members, who are known as Arbitrators. Terms vary in length, with some as long as three years.
Only the English Wikipedia holds a plebiscite (a non-binding vote) where Jimmy Wales still selects the Arbitrators in the end; all other projects' committees are elected independently of him. (Note that Wales considers his role almost entirely ceremonial, similar to the Queen of England's authority over Parliament.)
Projects with Arbitration Committees[edit]
- Wikipedia versions
- Czech
- German - arbcomde-l
lists.wikimedia.org - English - arbcom-llists.wikimedia.org
- Persian
- Finnish
- Korean - arbcom-kolists.wikimedia.org
- Dutch - arbcom-nllists.wikimedia.org
- Polish
- Russian
- Thai
- Ukrainian
- Wikinews
Projects with inactive or trial Arbitration Committees[edit]
- Wikipedia versions
- (First version) An ArbCom that was proposed (and discussed) in May 2007, never reached consensus
- (Second version) Existed from June 7, 2009 to January 23, 2010
- An ArbCom was proposed in 2006, never reached consensus.
- Spanish (dissolved April 2009)
- Portuguese (dissolved January 2012)
- Swedish (inactive)
- Slovenian (deleted, with a redirect to Wikipedija:Mediacija). The page exists only as a framework for eventual setting up. The mediation wasn't needed so far, so the rules for the election process haven't been established yet.
See also[edit]
- Wikimedia Arbitration committees election processes
- wikt:arbitration, wikt:committee
- Global arbitration committee (proposal)
