Boston Appeals Fall 1999
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Presents They Had Their Beans Baked In Beantown Appeals at the 1999 Fall NABC Edited by Rich Colker ACBL Appeals Administrator Assistant Editor Linda Trent ACBL Appeals Manager CONTENTS Foreword iii The Expert Panel v Cases from San Antonio Tempo (Cases 1-24) 1 Unauthorized Information (Cases 25-35) 93 Misinformation (Cases 35-49) 125 Claims (Cases 50-52) 177 Other (Case 53-56) 187 Closing Remarks From the Expert Panelists 199 Closing Remarks From the Editor 203 Special Section: The WBF Code of Practice (for Appeals Committees) 209 The Panel’s Director and Committee Ratings 215 NABC Appeals Committee 216 Abbreviations used in this casebook: AI Authorized Information AWMPP Appeal Without Merit Penalty Point LA Logical Alternative MI Misinformation PP Procedural Penalty UI Unauthorized Information i ii FOREWORD We continue with our presentation of appeals from NABC tournaments. As always, our goal is to provide information and to foster change for the better in a manner that is entertaining, instructive and stimulating. The ACBL Board of Directors is testing a new appeals process at NABCs in 1999 and 2000 in which a Committee (called a Panel) comprised of pre-selected top Directors will hear appeals at NABCs from non-NABC+ events (including side games, regional events and restricted NABC events). Appeals from NABC+ events will continue to be heard by the National Appeals Committees (NAC). We will review both types of cases as we always have traditional Committee cases. Panelists were sent all cases and invited to comment on and rate each Director ruling and Panel/Committee decision. Not every panelist will comment on every case. Ratings (averaged over panelists and expressed as percentages) are presented along with each write-up and again in a table at the end of the casebook, which also includes separate summaries for Panels and Committees and an overall summary. Numerical ratings are provided to summarize our assessment of Director and Panel/Committee performance. They are not intended, nor should they be used, to compare the performance of Directors and Panels/Committees as each group is evaluated on a different set of criteria: Directors are rated on their handling of the situation at the table including determining facts, applying the appropriate laws, and making a ruling which allows the game to progress normally —expecting that it may be reviewed and possibly overturned on appeal; Panels/Committees are rated on their fact finding, application of law, and use of bridge judgment appropriate to the level of the event and the players involved. (Note: Ratings can be affected by panelists’ views of the use, or lack of use, of PPs and AWMPPs.) Table rulings are typically made after consultation among Directors, including the DIC of the event (who is responsible for the final ruling). This is true even if we occasionally lapse and refer to a ruling as the table Director’s. At management’s request, only the DIC’s name is included in each write-up. Panels are expected to obtain bridge advice from expert players on each case. They should be judged on the players chosen and their use of the input received. Ambiguity Department. Write-ups often refer to such things as “an X-second break in tempo.” Our policy is to treat all tempo references as the total time taken for the call (unless otherwise specified) and not how much longer than “normal” the call took (which poses the additional problem of what is “normal” for the given auction). Chairmen and scribes should adjust their reports accordingly. Mild Disclaimer Department. While we try to insure that the write-ups that appear in these pages are complete and accurate, we can offer no guarantees. Since even minor changes in the reported facts can affect our evaluations, the opinions we express are valid only for cases which match the facts reported. Otherwise, the discussions here should be regarded as theoretical exercises only. New Format: For readers who have had difficulty distinguishing the editor’s comments from those of the panelists, beginning with this edition we have inserted a symbol (a hand holding a pen) before each editorial passage. We hope this helps. And finally, my thanks everyone whose efforts help to make these casebooks possible: the scribes, reviewers and chairmen who labor to chronicle the details of each case; the panelists for their hard work and devotion to a truly arduous task for which they receive only our praise (and occasional abuse); and, of course, Linda Trent, NABC Appeals Manager. My sincere thanks to all of you. I hope my efforts have not in any way diminished your work. Rich Colker, May, 2000 iii iv THE EXPERT PANEL Tournament Directors in the European Bridge League and has been the Operations Director of the WBF since 1991. He is Chairman of the WBF Laws Committee Henry Bethe, 56, was born in Los Alamos, NM. He is a graduate of Columbia (succeeding Edgar Kaplan) and has been a member since 1993. University and currently resides in Ithaca, NY. He has a son, Paul. His other interests include stamp collecting, baseball statistics and other mathematical Chris Patrias, 50, was born in North Carolina and now lives in the St Louis area recreations. He is a Team Leader of the National Appeals Committee. He won the with his wife, Charlotte, and their two dogs. He is a graduate of the University of Life Master Men’s Pairs in 1969 but is proudest of winning the third bracket of a Minnesota. He has been directing bridge tournaments since 1977 and is a salaried Regional Knockout partnered by his son Paul at the Chicago NABC. ACBL National Director. Bart Bramley, 52, was born in Poughkeepsie, NY. He grew up in Connecticut and Jeffrey Polisner, 60, was born in Buffalo, NY and currently resides in Northern CA Boston and is a graduate of MIT. He credits Ken Lebensold as an essential where he has been a practicing attorney since 1967. He is a graduate of Ohio State influence in his bridge development. He currently resides in Chicago with his University (BS) and obtained his JD from Case Western Reserve. He is currently longtime companion Judy Wadas. He is a stock options trader at the CBOE. Bart the WBF Counsel and former ACBL League Counsel. He is a member of the ACBL is a sports fan (especially baseball and specifically the NY Yankees), a golf and WBF Laws Commissions and former Co-Chairman of the ACBL National enthusiast, a Deadhead and enjoys word games. He was 1997 Player of the Year. Appeals Committee. His NABC wins include the 1989 Reno Vanderbilt and the 1997 Reisinger. In 1998 he was second in the World Par Contest and third in the Rosenblum Teams. He also Barry Rigal, 42, was born in London, England. He currently resides in New York played in the 1991 Bermuda Bowl and captained the 1996 U.S. Olympiad team. City with his wife, Sue Picus. A bridge writer and analyst, he contributes to many periodicals worldwide and is the author of the book, Precision in the Nineties. He Jon Brissman, 55, was born in Abilene, TX. He attended Purdue University and enjoys theater, music, arts, and travel. Barry is also an outstanding Vugraph earned a B.A. from Parsons College, an M.A. from Northeast Missouri State commentator, demonstrating an extensive knowledge of bidding systems played by University, and a J.D. from Western State University College of Law. He operates pairs all over the world. He coached the USA I team to the Venice Cup in 1997. He a small law office in San Bernardino, California, teaches at the Los Angeles College is proudest of his fourth-place finish in the 1990 Geneva World Mixed Pairs and of Chiropractic, and serves as a judge pro tem in small claims and municipal court. winning the Common Market Mixed Teams in 1987 and the Gold Cup in 1991. He was Co-Chairman of the National Appeals Committee from 1982-88 and was reappointed in 1997. A Good Will Committee member, he believes that a pleasant Michael Rosenberg, 46, was born in New York where he has resided since 1978. demeanor coaxes forth his partnership's best efforts. He is a stock options trader. His mother, father and sister reside in Scotland where he grew up. His hobbies include music. Widely regarded as the expert’s expert, Ralph Cohen, 73, was born in Montreal, PQ. He currently resides in Memphis, TN. Michael won the Rosenblum KO and was second in the Open Pairs in the 1994 He has held several positions with the ACBL from 1971 until 1991 including World Championships. He was the ACBL Player of the Year in 1994 and won the Executive Director from 1984 to 1986. He has been a member of ACBL Laws World Par Contest at the 1998 World Championships. He believes the bridge Commission since 1984 and is currently a Co-Chairman. He is a Vice-Chairman of accomplishment he will be proudest of is still in the future. Michael is a leading the WBF Laws Committee. He wrote the Ruling the Game column for two years spokesman for ethical bridge play and for policies that encourage higher standards. along with other contributions for The ACBL Bridge Bulletin. He represented Canada in the World Team Olympiad in 1964 and has won four National David Stevenson, 53, was born in Kumasi, Gold Coast. He currently resides in Championships. He has been attending NABCs since 1947. Liverpool, England with his wife Elizabeth and his two cats, Quango and Nanki Poo. His hobbies include anything to do with cats and trains.