The conciliation committee procedure is not a court proceeding, as the conciliation committee does not decide on legal disputes. Unlike in labor court proceedings, the “all or nothing principle” does not apply when determining whether a claim exists or not. Rather, the conciliation committee decides on regulatory disputes, i.e., the question of how existing co-determination rights are structured.

Labor court proceedings are presided over by judges who hold public office. According to Section 76 (2) of the Works Constitution Act (BetrVG), the chairpersons of the conciliation committee are merely impartial persons agreed upon by both parties. Although there are no legal requirements for the qualification of a chairperson, labor court judges or lawyers, mediators, or human resources managers with specific training often serve as chairpersons of conciliation committees. The partisan employers' associations or trade unions as well as neutral service providers such as CampusArbeitswelt help with the selection of chairpersons.

In conciliation proceedings, there is no obligation to be represented by a lawyer, but each party to the proceedings has the option of appointing a lawyer, expert, or other external party as an assessor. In some cases, lawyers and experts, as well as advisors representing one of the parties, also support the respective assessors in the proceedings.

The conciliation committee therefore represents an alternative dispute resolution procedure, the costs of which must be borne by the employer. The costs of a one-day conciliation committee proceeding with two external assessors amount to approximately €6,000.