The parties shall select one of the Non-Injury Grievance Arbitrators who shall concurrently serve as the Impartial Arbitrator, who shall have exclusive jurisdiction to determine disputes that are specifically referred to the Impartial Arbitrator pursuant to the express terms of this Agreement.

The powers of the Impartial Arbitrator and the rights of the parties in any proceeding before him or her shall be solely to determine disputes that are specifically referred to the Impartial Arbitrator pursuant to the express terms of this Agreement. In no event shall the Impartial Arbitrator have any authority to add to, subtract from, or alter in any way the provisions of this Agreement..

Rulings of the Impartial Arbitrator shall upon their issuance be final and binding upon all parties, except as expressly specified under this Agreement or as expressly agreed to among all parties

In any of the disputes described in this Agreement over which the Impartial Arbitrator has authority, the Impartial Arbitrator shall, for good cause shown, grant reasonable and expedited discovery upon the application of any party where, and to the extent, he determines it is reasonable to do so and it is possible to do so within the time period provided for his determination. Such discovery may include the production of documents and the taking of depositions.

The compensation to and costs of the Impartial Arbitrator in any proceeding brought pursuant to this Agreement shall be equally borne by the NFL and the NFLPA. In no event shall any party be liable for the attorneys’ fees or litigation costs incurred in any such proceeding by any other party.

All matters in proceedings before the Impartial Arbitrator shall be heard and determined in an expedited manner. Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, a proceeding may be commenced upon 48 hours written notice served upon the party against whom the proceeding is brought and the Impartial Arbitrator, and the arbitration, shall be deemed to have been commenced on the second business day after such notice was given. All such notices and all orders and notices issued and directed by the Impartial Arbitrator shall be served upon the NFL and the NFLPA, in addition to any counsel appearing for individual NFL players or individual Clubs. The NFL and the NFLPA shall have the right to participate in all such proceedings, and the NFLPA may appear in any proceedings on behalf of any NFL player who has given authority for such appearance.

In the event that the NFL and the NFLPA cannot agree on the identity of an Impartial Arbitrator, the parties agree that the Impartial Arbitrator shall be selected using the same method set forth in Article 15, Section 6. The Impartial Arbitrator shall serve for a two-year term commencing on the date of entry of the order of appointment, unless the parties agree otherwise. The Impartial Arbitrator shall continue to serve for successive two-year terms unless notice to the contrary is given either by the NFL or the NFLPA. Such notice shall be given to the other party and the Impartial Arbitrator within the ninety days preceding the end of any term, but no later than thirty days prior to the end of such term. If necessary, a new Impartial Arbitrator shall be selected in accordance with the procedures of this Section. The NFL and NFLPA may dismiss the Impartial Arbitrator at any time and for any reason upon their mutual consent. Unless the parties otherwise agree, a discharged Impartial Arbitrator shall retain jurisdiction for any proceeding which has been commenced prior to such discharge.