The following is a proposed Wikipedia policy, guideline, or process. The proposal may still be in development, under discussion, or in the process of gathering consensus for adoption.
This is a code of conduct for members of the Arbitration Committee, Wikipedia's final dispute-resolution body. Its members are expected to have integrity, behave honestly, and be fair and neutral in their dealings with other editors. Editors should not stand for membership of the Committee if they are not willing to abide by this code of conduct.
Preface
As Wikipedia is not a bureaucracy, this code is to be honoured in spirit as well as letter; it is not an exhaustive list of the expected proper conduct of Committee members.
User accounts
Candidates are expected to disclose all previous accounts and current alternative accounts during their candidacy. If there are privacy concerns, they should declare the number of accounts they have operated, the period during which the accounts were active, whether the hidden accounts had clean block records. They should pass the names of the accounts to two or more checkusers with an explanation as to why the information cannot be made public. Those in receipt of this information will verify the information about the accounts and assist the candidate in explaining the accounts to the Community by documenting non-private information about the account(s) on the candidates nomination page.
Candidates are expected to declare any other matter they believe the community might regard as an impediment to their service in good standing on the Committee.
Members must recuse themselves from cases in which they could reasonably be said to have a conflict of interest. This includes holding strong views on the topic at hand, and significant involvement with one of the parties, either on favourable or unfavourable terms.
Upholding site rules and policies
Members are expected to apply Wikipedia's policies and the Committee's decisions equally to all editors, and to uphold the rules themselves, on- and off-wiki.
Where a Committee member becomes aware of a serious violation of policy or of the Committee's decisions, that member is obliged to inform the rest of the Committee.
Stepping down
If an absence becomes extended, an arbitrator should step down from their position until they have more time to dedicate to their position.
An arbitrator should step down gracefully if they are no longer able to satisfactorily perform their job duties.
Due diligence
Arbitrators are expected to do their utmost to perform their duties to the best of their ability without fear or favour and to prioritize their responsibilities as arbitrators over all other Wikipedia commitments. They are neither expected nor required to prioritize their arbitration role above real-life commitments and responsibilities.
Arbitrator stress
Arbitrators are reminded that the attrition rate among arbitrators is high and they are encouraged to pace their work load and participation accordingly. A stressed arbitrator is unlikely to be performing at their best.
Arbitrators are encouraged to (i) report all instances of hounding and stalking by disaffected litigants and (ii) disclose persistent attempts by editors to engage in back-channel communication. Arbitrators are not expected to regard harassment as a normal part of their role.
Arbitrator responsibility
The primary responsibility of an arbitrator is to preserve the encyclopedia and to protect it from harm, and an arbitrator may use any reasonable means to further this objective. This sometimes includes providing informal advice and/or guidance with a view to reducing potential problems.
