Day 092 - 27 Feb 95 - Page 74


     
     1        I would not want to run out of time because one does not
     2        (a) whether it is going to be ------
     3
     4   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Do you just need to know the proposed
     5        amendment or my ruling on the question of -----
     6
     7   MR. RAMPTON:  I need to know what your Lordship says about it,
     8        because if your Lordship did not let it in for any reason,
     9        then we could forget about it.
    10
    11   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes.
    12
    13   MR. RAMPTON:  If, for example, the proposed amendment were not
    14        apt to bring in the report, I mean, I just do not know.
    15        I cannot predict.  All I would say ------
    16
    17   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  What period of time are you asking for?
    18
    19   MR. RAMPTON:  I think we would only need a week, would we not?
    20        Yes, we would only need seven days from the date of your
    21        Lordship's ruling.
    22
    23   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Do you want to say anything about that?  It
    24        seems to me perfectly reasonable that, first of all, to
    25        wait and see what the form of your proposed amendment is,
    26        then when whether I give you leave to amend it and then
    27        within seven days there will be a counter notice, if
    28        Mr. Rampton chooses to advise his clients to serve one.
    29        I cannot see any disadvantage from your point of view.
    30
    31   MS. STEEL:  The only problem, possibly, that I see with that is
    32        depending on when you were able to make a decision on it,
    33        whether it would give us enough time to have a decision
    34        from the Plaintiffs before Mr. Kenny gives evidence or
    35        other relevant witnesses.
    36
    37   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  It might or it might not, but the difficulty
    38        is that you cannot sensibly expect McDonald's to decide
    39        whether to serve a counter notice until they know whether
    40        there is any possibility of it going in at all.
    41
    42   MS. STEEL:  No, I understand that.
    43
    44   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  One cannot decide that until one knows
    45        whether you have leave to amend and, if you have, in what
    46        form.  If you agree with the sense so far, then something
    47        like seven days is really the reasonable minimum that one
    48        should give for the counter notice.
    49
    50   MS. STEEL:  That was basically what my concern was. 
    51 
    52   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, all right.  I will extend the time of 
    53        service for any counter notice in respect of the Civil
    54        Evidence Act notice which has been applied to the PHLS
    55        report before until seven days after I rule on any relevant
    56        amendment.
    57
    58   MR. RAMPTON:  Thank you.
    59
    60   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  10.30 in the morning.

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