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Publishing Pubs Code Arbitration Awards

Updated 17 December 2020

1. Why is the PCA publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards?

The Pubs Code Adjudicator (PCA) encourages greater openness and transparency in Pubs Code (the Code) arbitrations. An important step in achieving this is the publication of arbitration awards.

Publication enables the industry to understand decisions made by arbitrators, including where the PCA has appointed an alternative arbitrator. It gives tied tenants and pub companies an equal level of understanding as to how the Code is being applied in individual arbitrations. This encourages greater negotiation between tenants and pub companies which in turn helps to settle disputes more quickly and reduces the need for arbitration.

Awards will be considered as appropriate for publication where the award contains an arbitrator’s decision on the issues in dispute.

2. Why does the PCA ask the tenant and pub company for consent to publish the award?

The procedural rules which generally apply to arbitrations acknowledge the confidentiality of an award. The PCA asks the tenant and pub company to agree to waive this confidentiality. In line with data protection responsibilities, the PCA also requires an individual’s consent to publish their personal data in the award.

3. Have regulated pub companies agreed to the PCA publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards?

Yes. Pub companies regulated by the Code have all made clear their general support the PCA’s approach to publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards. The pub company is asked to give its specific consent before publication of each award.

4. Will a tenant be asked to consent to the PCA publishing the arbitration award?

Yes. Where publication is being considered, the tenant will be asked if they agree to waive confidentiality in respect of the award.

The tenant will also be asked if they consent to the PCA publishing their personal data. This is any information that could identify the tenant and could include the name of the pub if the context means the tenant could be identified from this.

A tenant is not obliged to give consent and their decision will have no impact on the arbitration case or any future interaction with the PCA. Any individual who consents to the publication of their personal information may withdraw this consent at any time by contacting the PCA.

5. Will consent be requested from anyone else?

If the award includes an individual’s personal information, the PCA will not publish this information without their consent. Where the award includes personal information relating to a third party individual, such as an employee or advisor, they may be invited to consent to the PCA publishing their personal information within the award.

6. How will the PCA make sure specific information in the award is not published?

Where information is not to be published, it will be redacted from the award. Redaction is the process by which information is obscured or removed from a document. This is usually done by blacking out parts of a document so that it cannot be read.

7. Will the PCA publish the award in full?

Where an individual has not given consent to the PCA to publish their personal information, or where consent has not been requested, this personal information will not appear in any published award.

The tenant and pub company giving consent to publication of an award will be asked to identify any information within it that they do not want to be published.

The PCA wants to publish awards in the most helpful form to the industry. Often, the facts of a dispute may be necessary for the reader to fully understand the arbitrator’s decision and how the principles have been applied. Pub companies should only redact personal and/or any commercially sensitive information which would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of any person or entity. Tenants are encouraged to consider the same. The PCA recognises that the tenant and pub company may have a legitimate interest in keeping such information confidential and out of the public domain.

Where an individual consents to publication of their personal information, they may still identify sensitive information for redaction, such as that which relates to their private affairs where revealing this might significantly harm the individual’s interests.

8. Will the PCA publish information about an award in other formats?

Publishing Pubs Code arbitration awards ensures the industry – particularly tied pub tenants – have the greatest understanding possible of how the Code is being applied. Where the PCA does not have consent to publish the award, the PCA may publish an anonymised version or summary.

The PCA may also publish an anonymised version or summary of the award instead of seeking consent from the tenant and pub company where that is considered to be appropriate and helpful to the industry.

9. Where will the PCA publish the arbitration award?

The award will be published here on the PCA website, where all other published awards and summaries can be found.