Art. 15 deals with the duration of service and consequences of a vacancy on the Panels.

The earlier drafts provided for four years of service on the Panels (History, Vol. I, pp. 76, 78). There were several suggestions that this term be extended. Eventually, it was fixed at six years with a possibility of renewal (History, Vol. II, pp. 144, 385, 386, 489, 562, 662, 722, 730, 731, 753, 935).

The Convention does not explicitly address the possibility of a removal or replacement of a Panel member before the expiry of the six years of service. During the Convention's drafting, there was a suggestion that Panel members should only serve “subject to the pleasure” of the designating authority; in other words, that the designation could be terminated at any time. Other delegates saw a danger to the independence of Panel members in this proposal. The idea to allow the removal of Panel members during their period of service was defeated in two votes (History, Vol. II, pp. 487–489, 562, 730–732). The peremptory language of Art. 15(1) (“shall serve for … six years”) also supports the interpretation that, once designated, a Panel member may not be withdrawn by the designating authority (see Art. 16, para. 6).