If dealers really did rely on arbitration to resolve most disputes, one would expect that if it were not available more disputes would go to court. This is not observed; litigation between two nonmembers is also infrequent. Similarly, if reputation bonds were not strong enough to enforce arbitration judgments, one would expect to see frequent recourse to the courts for judicial confirmation of arbitrated judgments. This is also not observed. Thus, it appears that the dispute resolution institutions in the diamond industry can fairly be called extralegal: it is primarily the fear of damage to reputation that maintains discipline in the diamond trade, not the bourse's board of arbitrators or the procedural right to appeal arbitrated decisions in court.

Lisa Bernestein, Opting out of the Legal Sys…, loc. 252