What an arbitrator can and must do

(a) An arbitrator shall conduct an arbitration in a manner the arbitrator considers appropriate for a fair and expeditious disposition of the dispute. (b) An arbitrator shall provide each party a right to be heard, to present evidence material to the family law dispute, and to cross-examine witnesses. (c) Unless the parties otherwise agree in a record, an arbitrator's powers include the power to: (1) Select the rules for conducting the arbitration; (2) Hold conferences with the parties before a hearing; (3) Determine the date, time, and place of a hearing; (4) Require a party to provide: (A) A copy of a relevant court order; (B) Information required to be disclosed in a family law proceeding under law of this State other than this chapter; and (C) A proposed award that addresses each issue in arbitration; (5) Meet with or interview a child who is the subject of a child-related dispute; (6) Appoint a private expert at the expense of the parties; (7) Administer an oath or affirmation and issue a subpoena for the attendance of a witness or the production of documents and other evidence at a hearing; (8) Compel discovery concerning the family law dispute and determine the date, time, and place of discovery; (9) Determine the admissibility and weight of evidence; (10) Permit deposition of a witness for use as evidence at a hearing; (11) For good cause, prohibit a party from disclosing information; (12) Appoint an attorney, guardian ad litem, or other representative for a child at the expense of the parties; (13) Impose a procedure to protect a party or child from risk of harm, harassment, or intimidation; (14) Allocate arbitration fees, attorney's fees, expert-witness fees, and other costs to the parties; and (15) Impose a sanction on a party for bad faith or misconduct during the arbitration according to standards governing imposition of a sanction for litigant misconduct in a family law proceeding. (d) An arbitrator shall not allow ex parte communication except to the extent allowed in a family law proceeding for communication with a judge.