Teams will vote to elect FIA judges

From the 2010 season, Formula 1 teams will be able to nominate judges for any FIA Court of Appeal (ICA) hearing. Based in Paris, the court deals with any appeal cases following FIA sanctions, such as with Renault when its ban from the European Grand Prix was overturned this season. As F1 governing body, the Paris-based FIA has the power to impose penalties on teams or certain individuals following actions both on and off the race track; from next year, however, teams will be able to make use of a new system allowing them to suggest judges for appeal hearings.

The move comes following a meeting of the ICA, which is made up of judges from 18 countries, in Monaco last Friday.
With both the FIA and all teams agreeing with the new procedure, judges will now be 'co-opted' by the teams for any given appeal hearing, with the post-Brazil 2007 fuel irregularities case of BMW and Williams being another example. For all hearings, elected ICA judges will form the majority of any panel, the FIA has confirmed.

The FIA's Wednesday statement explains: 'All elected ICA judges are bound by formal undertakings to remain absolutely independent and impartial (from teams, from National Sporting Authorities, from the FIA itself, and from any other party). The new 'co-opted' judges will adhere to identical standards of independence and impartiality.' gpupdate.net