[Hilver]

Matchpoint pairs
West dealer / all vulnerable

Sitting South You hold:
♠ 10 8 7 3 2
♥ A 6
♦ A K 10 9 6
♣ 9

After displaying the STOP-card from the biddingbox, West opens 4♥. After West removing the STOP-card after 10 seconds, North still thinks about 10 seconds and then passes.
Your RHO, East, passes too.
Should South pass or is South still allowed to double, or make a bid of 4♠, 4NT or 5♦?

Thx

Jan

[weejonnie]

What would North have done with
♠876
♥QJ874
♦QJ4
♣43

He would have passed - so the UI is that he has values, but not enough to take action. It is unlikely he has values in spades as he would have passed quicker.

I think I would have to find out (if possible) if North has a reputation for taking time for making calls - some people are naturally quick and others slow.
(As a matter of course, South can do what he wants at the table, the director will make a record and then come back if requested.)
So now we have a BIT (I assume double is for takeout)

So we look at 73C and 16B1

C. Player Receives Unauthorized Information from Partner
When a player has available to him unauthorized information
from his partner, such as from a remark, question, explanation, gesture,
mannerism, undue emphasis, inflection, haste or hesitation, an
unexpected* alert or failure to alert, he must carefully avoid
taking any advantage from that unauthorized information.

B. Extraneous Information from Partner
1. (a) After a player makes available to his partner extraneous information
that may suggest a call or play, as for example by a remark, a question, a
reply to a question, an unexpected* alert or failure to alert, or by
unmistakable hesitation, unwonted speed, special emphasis, tone, gesture,
movement, or mannerism, the partner may not choose from among logical
alternatives one that could [b]demonstrably[/b1] have been suggested over another
by the extraneous information

So the LAs seem to be - Pass, X, 4♠, 5♦, 4NT

The UI suggests values so X, 4♠, 5♦, 4NT are suggested over the pass. (This is subject to discussion, some of these may turn out not to be LAs - but 73C still applies)
Note that if very few players would pass then Pass stops being an LA and any bid is acceptable.

Ergo - THOSE calls are contra indicted. South can bid 6♦, 5♠, 5♥ or some such as they definitely aren't LAs

If you feel very strongly about this your best argument to avoid a PP would say that you felt that at matchpoints pass was not a LA - good luck with that!

[helene_t]

It is of course possible that North was thinking of bidding 5♣. This might make it less attractive for South to bid. But I think that on balance the hesitation makes it more attractive to bid (or double). So the ethical choice is to pass.