Definition
The records and procedures that turn a right to challenge a decision into one people can use. It keeps a register of who may challenge which kinds of decision, including the people who bear the system's errors. It also names the admissible evidence, the responder, the deadline, the standard of review, and the state transitions a successful challenge can produce.
It matters because corrective standing declared without a mechanism can be neither exercised nor audited. The mechanism is the part of contestability an auditor can inspect: named responders, real clocks, and recorded outcomes.
AgencyStructural
Tests that show it is in place
- The register, responder, deadline, and standard of review are published, not held internally.
- The set of possible outcomes includes at least one that changes system state.
- Non-retaliation is attested and monitored for the parties who use the mechanism.
Evidence to keep
- Artifact: A published standing mechanism specification with register, responder, clock, and outcomes.
- Behavior: A challenge routed through the mechanism and answered by the named responder on time.
- Metric: Challenge volume, response-clock breach rate, and outcome distribution.
References
- STD-02 Contestability and recourse · Standard
- Standing taxonomy branch · Taxonomy