Day 120 - 03 May 95 - Page 63
1
2 MR. MORRIS: Sorry, when you were asked to enquire into this
3 when, sorry?
4 A. After this had become one of the pleadings.
5
6 Q. So you enquired into this and what did you find?
7 A. I was advised that that was incorrect.
8
9 Q. Yes, what did you find?
10 A. He was an unsatisfactory recruit. He just simply did
11 not have his position approved at the end of his
12 probationary period.
13
14 Q. For what reason?
15 A. I do not know. That was what I was advised, he was
16 just an unsatisfactory worker.
17
18 Q. But you did not look into that?
19 A. No, no further than that.
20
21 Q. You just believed what somebody told you?
22 A. Of course.
23
24 Q. If Jeffrey Shaw had told you something different, then you
25 would choose to believe someone -----
26
27 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I am going to stop you there because what you
28 are perfectly entitled to do provided you have pleaded
29 something, for better or worse this pleading is there so
30 you are entitled, as the Court of Appeal said, to see if
31 you can get something to support it by cross-examination.
32 Once you have an answer from the witness who is in the
33 witness box who is not supporting it, then you have gone as
34 far as you can on that.
35
36 MR. MORRIS: Yes.
37
38 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You will either get an answer which does give
39 you some ammunition, or you will get a "no", which is what
40 you are getting now, and then you have gone as far as you
41 justifiably can.
42
43 MR. MORRIS: Can I just have a couple of minutes?
44
45 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. (Pause).
46
47 MR. MORRIS: To be honest, if it was possible we would like to
48 end early today, bearing in mind that we are absolutely
49 certain we would be finished by Friday.
50
51 MR. JUSTICE BELL: If you can assure me that you will finish
52 your cross-examination of Mr. Nicholson on employment this
53 week, subject to anything Mr. Rampton wants to say, I do
54 not mind adjourning early today. It will give you a little
55 bit of extra time for tomorrow.
56
57 MR. MORRIS: Yes, we can give that assurance.
58
59 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Is there anything you want to say,
60 Mr. Rampton?
