PHOENIX AP – A federal appeals court on Thursday upheld an Arizona court rule requiring lawyers to serve as arbitrators on some civil cases with little pay, even if they object.

The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco came 10 years after tax attorney Mark V. Scheehle of Prescott Valley objected to being forced to serve as an arbitrator in a civil case in Maricopa County, a duty required of Arizona lawyers.