Richard Whittam KC to chair new Cricket Disciplinary Panel

Richard Whittam KC has been appointed chairman of the cricket Disciplinary Panel (CDP), a new independent tribunal that will replace the cricket Disciplinary Commission as the body to hear and rule on regulatory breaches in English professional cricket and subsequent sanctions imposed .

Whittam’s appointment, made by the ECB Council for a four-year term, follows an open recruitment process. The 64-year-old is a regulatory and criminal lawyer with experience in sports.

After serving as a deputy high court judge between 2016 and 2022, Whittam was appointed head of the Rugby Football Union’s independent judiciary last year. He has chaired discipline, safeguarding and appeal panels in rugby since 2014. Whittam is also a member of the judicial panels of Word Rugby and European Professional Club Rugby.

Whittam will be responsible for presiding over specific disciplinary cases and appointing other CDP members who possess an appropriate range of skills and diversity. Once those are established, the panel will begin considering cases, taking over this function from the current CDC, which is chaired by Tim O’Gorman.

The majority of cases brought before the panel will relate to breaches of the ECB’s Regulations of Professional Conduct, but will also include other regulations such as the Anti-Corruption Code, Minimum Standards of Players and Match Officials, Conditions of Playing cricket, Regulations of Bowling Review, Regulations and Head Protector Regulations.

Speaking about his appointment, Whittam said: “I am delighted to have been appointed to this important role. It is vital to the integrity of cricket that the rules and regulations of the sport are upheld. As the first President of the CDP, I look forward to securing the Panel in functioning and ensuring that cases are dealt with promptly, fairly, thoroughly and transparently.

ECB Chairman Richard Thompson said: “The independent cricket Disciplinary Panel will play an important role in enforcing cricket regulations and dealing with any misconduct and regulatory breaches. Richard Whittam KC has impressive experience in law and sports discipline, which makes him the ideal person to chair the Panel.

“I would like to convey my sincere thanks to Tim O’Gorman and all the members of the cricket Disciplinary Commission panel for the service they have given to the game over many years. They have played an important duty in enforcing cricket regulations “, and I am grateful for their continued service as the new members of the cricket Disciplinary Panel are recruited.”