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§ I · Domain OUT · Control 14 of 16
Control
OUT-14
Edition
v.1.3
Status
Public review

OUT · Output Integrity & Supply Chain

OUT-14Contestability and appeal process

A documented process allows affected individuals to contest or appeal a consequential agent decision and to obtain human review. The process is published in user-facing terms.

A documented process allows affected individuals to contest or appeal a consequential agent decision and to obtain human review. The process is published in user-facing terms and tracked through the human review queue (MON-05). This control ensures that agent decisions are not final: that a human path exists for individuals who believe they have been treated unfairly or incorrectly.

Table OUT-14.1 · Maturity criteria · v.1.3

L1 to L5 · the lowest level in scope caps the agent
L1Ad hoc

Controls exist informally; documentation is incomplete; no consistent review.

L2Documented

Controls are written down; ownership is assigned; review cadence is defined.

L3Operated

Controls are followed in practice; evidence is collected; deviations are tracked.

Contestability process is documented and published in user-facing terms; the process is tracked through the human review queue; at least one contest or appeal has been processed or the process has been tested end-to-end.

L4Measured

Control effectiveness is measured against documented thresholds; trends are reported.

L5Continuously Improved

Controls evolve based on incident learning; maturity gains are evidenced over time.

The v1.3 edition publishes a control-specific criterion at L3 (Operated). The other levels apply the general ladder to this control; see the maturity ladder.

Evidence an assessor asks for

  1. E.1

    Contestability process is documented and published in user-facing terms.

  2. E.2

    The process is tracked through the human review queue.

  3. E.3

    At least one contest or appeal has been processed or the process has been tested end-to-end.

Table OUT-14.2 · Framework mappings

3 of 7 frameworks carry a control-level reference
NIST AI RMFMANAGE 3.2NIST AI Risk Management Framework 1.0
ISO/IEC 42001·ISO/IEC 42001:2023 · Artificial intelligence management system
OWASP LLM Top 10·OWASP Top 10 for Large Language Model Applications
SOC 2 (TSC)·AICPA Trust Services Criteria for SOC 2 Type II
EU AI ActArt. 14(4)EU AI Act · Regulation (EU) 2024/1689
MITRE ATLAS·MITRE ATLAS · Adversarial Threat Landscape for AI Systems
SingaporeAI Verify Fairness, AI Verify TransparencySingapore Model AI Governance Framework / AI Verify / PDPA

Mappings are directional: meeting this control evidences but does not by itself satisfy the external requirement. A middle dot means no control-level reference is published at this edition; see the crosswalk.

Related controls and terms

Cite this control

Human Intelligence. HI-AAF v1.3, OUT-14 Contestability and appeal process. Public review edition, July 2026. https://humanintel.net/standard/out/out-14

Edition v.1.3 · July 2026 · Public review · Markdown · PDF

https://humanintel.net/standard/out/out-14

Notice

HI-AAF v1.3 is an independent framework published by Human Intelligence. It is not affiliated with NIST, ISO, AICPA, or any government or accreditation body. The framework is offered openly for review during the current draft cycle.