File and Trial

Definition

"File and Trial" is an unofficial term that pertains to salary arbitration. When you hear a team described as a "file and trial" club, it means they treat the arbitration figure exchange date as a hard deadline; if the club and player are unable to avoid arbitration prior to exchanging salary figures, the understanding is that the will club no longer negotiate one-year deals with that player. However, that is not a binding decision and the team and players are always allowed to resume negotiation on a one-year or multi-year deal.