Day 158 - 19 Jul 95 - Page 42


     
     1        My Lord, there one has a somewhat exceptional position.
     2        What happened appears to have happened with the authority,
     3        at least, of Mr. Rhea and, quite possibly, of Mr. Turner.
     4
     5   MS. STEEL:  Can I just ask something on that because I thought a
     6        few minutes ago Mr. Rampton said that Mr. Turner was shown
     7        the letter.  I cannot remember, but if there is a letter,
     8        could he just point out where it is?  That would be
     9        helpful.  Thank you.
    10
    11   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, that being so, one has to scratch one's
    12        head, in my submission, very hard to see any room even for
    13        a reasonable belief, let alone a sensible inference, that
    14        that might have recurred or, not might have, would have
    15        recurred on other occasions at about that time.
    16
    17        One can see what will happen if this pleading stays as it
    18        is, the second part of paragraph 2, "national sections of
    19        the Company", thereby meaning all the worldwide
    20        subsidiaries; we will be expected in the course of the next
    21        two months to go around the whole world saying:  "Did you
    22        ever have a case where you imported some beef from Brazil?
    23        If you did, where did that beef come from?  How much beef
    24        was it", and so on and so forth.  If this is not a classic
    25        fishing expedition, I do not know when I have ever seen
    26        one.
    27
    28        My Lord, with that in mind -- because, in my submission,
    29        those submissions I make are derived or reflect accurately
    30        what Neill L.J. said -- I go back to the Court of Appeal in
    31        March 1994.
    32
    33   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  It was page 12, and then -----
    34
    35   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, I start on page 12 and I go on to
    36        page 13.
    37
    38   MS. STEEL:  Page 12 of the judgment?
    39
    40   MR. RAMPTON:  Page 12 of the judgment, starting, my Lord, at
    41        letter E:
    42
    43        "Nevertheless, I am satisfied that before a plea of
    44        justification is included in a defence the following
    45        criteria should normally be satisfied:
    46        (a)  the defendant should believe the words complained to
    47        be true;
    48        (b)  the defendant should intend to support the defence of
    49        justification at the trial;
    50        (c)  the defendant should have reasonable evidence to 
    51        support the plea or reasonable grounds for supposing that 
    52        sufficient evidence to prove the allegations will be 
    53        available at the trial."
    54
    55        Then he says something about fair comment at the top of the
    56        page.  Then at letter A on page 13:
    57
    58        "It is to be remembered that the defences of justification
    59        and fair comment form part of the framework by which free
    60        speech is protected.  It is, therefore, important that no

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