League Appeals

Clubs can appeal decisions taken by League Management Committees to a County FA Appeal Board. 

An appeal must be lodged within 14 days of the written notice of the decision via our online form. Should the appeal be unsuccessful, the appeal fee may be retained by the County FA.  An appeal can only be lodged by the party against which the decision was taken (ie a Club cannot appeal a League decision relating to another Club).

There are four grounds of appeal available. The Notice of Appeal must state which ground/s of appeal is being used:

That the body whose decision is appealed against…

1.    failed to give the appellant a fair hearing; and/or

2.    misinterpreted or failed to comply with the rules or regulations relevant to its decision; and/or

3.    came to a decision to which no reasonable such body could have come; and/or 

4.    imposed a penalty, award, order or sanction that was excessive.

Please note that decisions taken at an AGM or SGM can only be appealed on the grounds of "unconstitutional conduct.”

What happens next?

The Notice of the Appeal will be served on the League, requesting their observations and copies of all relevant documents within 21 days of the notice of appeal.  An Appeal Board will then be convened to consider the appeal.  

An Appeal is not a re-hearing of the original evidence but is a review of the decision itself and the process by which is was reached.

New Evidence

New evidence will only be accepted by either party when an application to submit new evidence has been made and approved.  

Any application to submit new evidence must be made either with the Notice of Appeal or the Response, and must set out the nature and relevance of the new evidence and why it was not presented at the original hearing.

New evidence will only be accepted in exceptional circumstances if the Appeal Board is satisfied (i) with the reason given as to why it was not, or could not have been, presented at the original hearing, and (ii) that the evidence is relevant.

What happens at the appeal board?

An Appeal may proceed in person or by correspondence, at the request of the Appellant.

If the Appeal proceeds in person, both parties will have the opportunity to present their case to the Appeal Board who may ask questions in return; however, the Appellant and Respondent will not have the opportunity to question each other. 

What are the potential outcomes?

The Appeal Board has the power to allow or dismiss the appeal, remit the matter for a new hearing, take any action the original deciding body could have taken, or any other action it sees fit.

The result of the appeal will be announced as soon possible and the decision of the appeal board is final and binding.

More Information

If you need any further support on this topic, please contact us via the Support Hub.

For more information about managing a grassroots football Club or League, please visit www.Berks-BucksFA.com. Alternatively, find us on socials @berksandbucksfa for the latest news and updates.