New Insufficient Bid Law

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Extract from minutes of English Bridge Union Laws and Ethics Committee

24th April 2008.

 

The Committee considered correspondence from Mr J W…… regarding the Regulating Authority (RA) option in new law 40B3. Following discussion the RA option in 40B3 was confirmed, however there was further discussion regarding permitted actions by the offending side following an insufficient bid. There had already been much correspondence through email and internet groups regarding the new law 27B1(B ) which allows a not accepted insufficient bid to be replaced with a legal call that has the same meaning, or a more precise meaning than the insufficient bid.

There was a worry that some unscrupulous pairs might deliberately make insufficient bids and then try to have an agreement about replaced calls. It was agreed that was illegal under Law 72B1, but could be difficult to prove. Instead the Committee sought to apply a specific regulation making it clear the practice would not be allowed.

The Committee agreed to replace the RA option passed on December 17th 2007 with the following:

40B3(d)

A pair is allowed to vary, by prior agreement, its understandings during the auction and play consequent on an irregularity by either side, except that following its own insufficient bid a partnership may not change by prior agreement the meaning of a replacement call so that it is brought within the criteria of Law27B1(B ).

It was agreed that all RA options would be published in the Orange Book supplement along with all the other Orange Books changes.