Published 22 September 2026

SCC Guide: Administrative secretaries

This guide provides a practical overview of the role of administrative secretaries under the SCC Arbitration Rules and the SCC Expedited Arbitration Rules, covering the legal framework, the appointment process, the scope of permissible tasks, and relevant case law.

Administrative secretaries, also known as tribunal secretaries, play an important role in supporting efficient, transparent and party-driven arbitration. By assisting Arbitral Tribunals with organisational and procedural tasks, they help ensure that proceedings run smoothly.

Administrative secretaries in Sweden and under the SCC Rules

The Swedish Arbitration Act (1999:116) does not contain specific provisions on administrative secretaries. However, in practice administrative secretaries are frequently appointed in arbitrations seated in Sweden, and Swedish courts take a pragmatic, arbitration-friendly approach to the question. No challenge to an arbitral award has been upheld in Sweden on the basis of the involvement of an administrative secretary.

The SCC Arbitration Rules provide a dedicated framework. Article 24 of the SCC Arbitration Rules and Article 25 of the SCC Expedited Arbitration Rules govern the appointment and use of administrative secretaries. The framework rests on three principles:

party approval,
transparency as to tasks, and
the preservation of the arbitrators’ personal mandate.

An administrative secretary is not a member of the Arbitral Tribunal. The role is to assist the Arbitral Tribunal by carrying out tasks of an organisational, administrative, or procedural nature, under the Arbitral Tribunal’s direction and supervision. The role provides less experienced practitioners with exposure to the inner workings of arbitral proceedings, while allowing arbitrators to focus on the substantive resolution of the dispute.

The Arbitral Tribunal must consult the parties regarding the tasks of the administrative secretary. Importantly, the Arbitral Tribunal may not delegate any decision-making authority to the administrative secretary (Article 24(2); Article 25(2)).

How is an administrative secretary appointed?

The SCC does not itself appoint administrative secretaries. The Arbitral Tribunal may at any time during the arbitration submit to the Secretariat a proposal for the appointment of a specific candidate. The appointment is subject to the approval of the parties. Before being appointed, the candidate must submit a Confirmation Form to the Secretariat covering:

Acceptance – an undertaking to follow the applicable SCC Rules
Availability – confirming sufficient time to assist the Arbitral Tribunal efficiently
Independence and impartiality – disclosing any circumstances that may give rise to justifiable doubts

A party may challenge the administrative secretary and request the SCC Board to release them from appointment. The challenge procedure mirrors the one for arbitrators. A request for release does not prevent the arbitration from proceeding unless the Arbitral Tribunal decides otherwise.

How is an administrative secretary remunerated?

The administrative secretary will be paid from the fees of the Arbitral Tribunal. The administrative secretary’s remuneration is not charged as a separate cost to the parties. Any appointment of an administrative secretary will therefore not increase the cost of the arbitration.

What may an administrative secretary do?

The Arbitral Tribunal and the parties are to agree on the tasks of the administrative secretary. The Arbitral Tribunal may not delegate any decision-making authority. Within those limits, the Arbitral Tribunal has broad discretion to shape the role to suit the needs of the case.

Referring to Jensen’s Traffic Light Scale of Permissible Tribunal Secretary Tasks,¹ modelled after the IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, may assist in this process. It classifies tasks into three categories based on the degree of party consent required:

Green List – Logistical support, correspondence, case file management, proofreading, and drafting non-substantive parts of the award. No party consent required.
Orange List – Attending hearings and deliberations, preparing procedural orders, summarising submissions, and drafting parts of the award under the Arbitral Tribunal’s instruction and supervision. Requires formal appointment with general party consent.
Red List – Actively participating in deliberations, providing legal opinions, independently drafting substantive reasoning, or facilitating settlement. Requires the parties’ informed and specific consent.

Best practice

When proposing the appointment of an administrative secretary, the Arbitral Tribunal should:
Propose the appointment as early as possible, ideally at the case management conference
Provide a clear description of the tasks the administrative secretary will carry out
Share the candidate’s CV and background to enable the parties to assess suitability
Give the parties a reasonable opportunity to raise concerns

How courts view the use of administrative secretaries

Courts in several jurisdictions have considered challenges to arbitral awards based on the use of administrative secretaries. The case law is consistent: the appointment and use of an administrative secretary does not, in itself, justify setting aside an award. What matters is transparency, party consent, and the preservation of the Arbitral Tribunal’s decision-making role.

In Sonatrach v Statoil [2014] EWHC 875 (Comm), the English High Court dismissed a challenge alleging the administrative secretary had exceeded her agreed role. The court held there was no evidence the administrative secretary had participated in the Arbitral Tribunal’s decision-making.

In P v Q [2017] EWHC 194 (Comm), Popplewell J held that receiving and considering the opinion of an administrative secretary does not prevent an arbitrator from arriving at an independent decision. However, the court cautioned that the Arbitral Tribunal should avoid involving the administrative secretary in anything that could be seen as expressing a view on the substance of the dispute.

In the Yukos set-aside proceedings (The Hague, 2020), the Dutch Court of Appeal held that, absent contrary agreement by the parties, whether to use an administrative secretary, and in what way, is within the Arbitral Tribunal’s procedural discretion. The Court was critical of the Arbitral Tribunal for not fully disclosing the scope of the administrative secretary’s role, but concluded that this did not amount to a procedural violation warranting annulment of the arbitral award.

In 2023, the Belgian Supreme Court confirmed that an administrative secretary may assist in drafting awards, provided the Arbitral Tribunal retains decisional control.

In Sweden, the Svea Court of Appeal addressed the question directly in Case T 8181-19, judgment of 8 October 2021. The claimant alleged that the chairperson had relied on the administrative secretary to draft the procedural orders and the award. The Court dismissed the challenge. Referring to Article 24 of the SCC Rules, the Court held that the fact that an administrative secretary has prepared a draft of, or proofread, an award or a procedural order does not in itself mean that the administrative secretary has had a decisive influence on the content of the award. Where the parties have not given the Arbitral Tribunal specific instructions about the division of tasks between the Arbitral Tribunal and the administrative secretary, and the administrative secretary has assisted with drafting or proofreading, this does not in itself constitute a procedural error.

AI and the evolving role

As AI tools become more prevalent and capable, administrative secretaries are well placed to integrate them into their work. The next generation is arguably more experienced in operating tools, reviewing output, and verifying accuracy, all while under the Arbitral Tribunal’s supervision.

The SCC supports the Global Tribunal Secretary Platform Global Tribunal Secretary Platform – a joint initiative of the Swiss Arbitration Association (ASA) and Jus Connect. The platform connects arbitrators with qualified administrative secretaries for independent collaboration and is free to use.

Moreover, together with Young Arbitrators Sweden (YAS), the SCC has organised training for administrative secretaries to help ensure the next generation of administrative secretaries is adequately prepared for the role.

Ultimately, as Dorothee Schramm observes in her SCC Spotlight Talk:

A good administrative secretary saves time. They allow arbitrators to focus on what needs to be decided rather than on tasks with a less favourable time-value ratio, such as drafting procedural histories or completing footnotes. They also help ensure nothing falls through the cracks. And a good administrative secretary provides an additional layer of quality assurance: a second pair of eyes from someone who knows the case intimately.

Conclusion

The SCC’s framework for administrative secretaries balances efficiency with safeguards. The SCC Rules provide clear guardrails emphasising party approval, consultation on tasks, a prohibition on delegating decision-making, and requirements of impartiality and independence. At the same time, the rules leave flexibility for the Arbitral Tribunal and the parties to shape the role to suit each case.

The SCC expects administrative secretaries will continue to play an important role in supporting efficient, transparent and party-driven arbitration.