Ethan Katsh, a professor a UMass and director of the Center for Information Technology and Dispute Resolution has written a letter to Paul Twomey asking why ICANN has not filled the position of ombudsman, a requirement of their bylaws:

The irony is that the ombuds position was supposed to contribute to enhanced accountability. The delays in filling the position, however, lead to a lessening of trust and to diminished accountability. The appointment of an ombudsman might also compensate for the fact that the other “accountability” processes, independent review and reconsideration, are either not functioning or barely functioning. The ombuds position was a new idea for ICANN and I had hoped that it would help greatly in building trust in the legitimacy of actions taken by ICANN. Unfortunately, not only is there no ombuds position but there is no independent review process either.

(source: Letter to ICANN President/CEO Paul Twomey)

Tomorrow Larry Lessig, who has long been a voice for ICANN openness, is testifying with Vint Cerf, ICANN's current chair, before the FCC (9:30a ET on C-SPAN3). It's hard not to wonder if Lessig will have any private words for Cerf, as Lessig's fellow EFF board member John Gilmore did.