Page 41 - Case Book 2017 - 2020 April 18

RYA 2001/13 RYA 2006/4
When the display of a protest flag is required but not The responsibility for calling witnesses at a protest
complied with, a protestee’s objection at the start of a hearing lies primarily with the parties to the protest.
hearing to the validity of the protest is to be upheld even
if the protestee must have been well aware of the RYA 2008/4
When there is contact between boats, a right-of-way
intention to protest.
rule will normally have already been broken. A protest
RYA 2006/4 committee must find facts to enable it to decide whether
When boats protest each other over the same incident, the any boat broke a rule. If a boat is found to have broken
hearing will continue if only one of the protests is valid. a rule the protest committee shall disqualify her unless
some other penalty applies.
Rule 63.6, Hearings: Taking Evidence and RYA 2014/3
Finding Facts Whether evidence is new is only relevant to the decision
to reopen a hearing. When a hearing has been
CASE 104
Attempting to distinguish between facts and conclusions reopened, there is no restriction on the evidence that
may be presented.
in a protest committee's findings is sometimes
unsatisfactory because findings may be based partially
on fact and partially on a conclusion. A national Rule 63.7, Hearings: Conflict between
authority can change a protest committee’s decision Rules
and any other findings that involve reasoning or
judgment, but not its findings of fact. A national CASE 98
The rules listed in the definition Rule apply to races
authority may derive additional facts by logical
deduction. Neither written facts nor diagrammed facts governed by The Racing Rules of Sailing whether or not
the notice of race or sailing instructions explicitly state
take precedence over the other. Protest committees must
resolve conflicts between facts when so required by a that they apply. A sailing instruction, provided it is
consistent with any prescription to rule 88.2, may change
national authority.
some or all of the prescriptions of the national authority.
CASE 136 Generally, neither the notice of race nor the sailing
In finding facts, a protest committee will be governed by instructions may change a class rule. When a boat races
the weight of evidence. In general, a race committee under a handicapping or rating system, the rules of that
member sighting the starting line is better placed than system apply, and some or all of her class rules may
any competing boat to decide whether a boat was over apply as well. When the notice of race conflicts with the
the line at the starting signal and, if so, whether she sailing instructions, neither takes precedence.
returned and started correctly. RYA 2002/8

RYA 1981/10 When there is a conflict between a sailing instruction
and the notice of race, this is to be resolved by rule
A member of a protest committee does not have a
conflict of interest merely because he or she witnessed 63.7. In isolation, a statement in the sailing instructions
that a sailing instruction will prevail over a conflicting
the incident. The protest committee is entitled to decide
the protest even if the protestor was not present for provision in the notice of race is not binding.
some of the hearing.
Rule 64.1, Decisions: Penalties and
RYA 1984/14 Exoneration
A party to the hearing, not the protest committee, is CASE 22
responsible for calling that party’s witnesses.
It is not relevant to the validity of a protest that a rule
RYA 1990/3 the protestor believes was broken is not one of the rules
When there is no collision there is a primary onus of proof that the protest committee later determines to have been
on the protestor to show that a rule has been broken. broken.

RYA 1992/7 CASE 26
When there is no other evidence, the protest committee A right-of-way boat need not act to avoid a collision
is entitled to reach a decision on the evidence of the until it is clear that the other boat is not keeping clear.
protestor and protestee alone. An additional witness is However, if the right-of-way boat could then have
desirable but not essential. avoided the collision and the collision resulted in
damage, she must be penalized for breaking rule 14.
RYA 1994/8
In finding facts, a protest committee will be governed by RYA 1969/1
the weight of evidence. In general, a race official When sailing instructions include an obligation that
sighting the starting line is better placed than any applies before or after a boat is racing, a boat may be
competing boat to decide whether a boat was over the penalized for breaking that rule. The penalty is to be
line at the starting signal and, if so, whether she applied to the race nearest in time to the incident.
returned and started correctly.

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