§ 25-2604.01.Arbitrators; disqualification.

A neutral arbitrator is supposed to be neutral, and section 25-2604.01 gives the parties a way to enforce that before the proceeding starts. When someone is proposed for nomination by all parties, or by all of the party-appointed arbitrators, to serve as the neutral arbitrator, that person must disqualify himself or herself if any party demands it on grounds recognized under section 24-739 — the same grounds Nebraska law uses to disqualify a judge.

The section adds a second, arbitration-specific ground: a proposed neutral arbitrator must also step aside if he or she is an employee or independent contractor of an industry, trade, or professional association of which only one of the parties is a member, since that kind of tie to one side’s trade group raises the same concern as any other conflict of interest. This second ground applies only if the grounds for it were known, or should have been known, by the party making the demand. In either case, the demand must come before the arbitration proceeding begins; the disqualification duty attaches at the nomination stage, not after the hearing is underway.