Day 149 - 06 Jul 95 - Page 52
1 MR. RAMPTON: No, I have not got it here. It is in the White
2 Book. My Lord, it is classic Ord. 24, rule 3 (sic),
3 discovery, so far as I remember.
4
5 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Spell it out, Mr. Rampton. You may know
6 something others do not.
7
8 MR. RAMPTON: That may be, my Lord. I am sure your Lordship
9 knows it. It may take me a little bit of time to plough
10 through the notes. Yes, the rule says, my Lord, Ord. 24,
11 rule 2: "Subject to the provisions of this rule and of
12 rule 4, the parties" ------
13
14 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes, let me find it.
15
16 MR. RAMPTON: Sorry, my Lord, it is page 434 of volume 1.
17
18 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
19
20 MR. RAMPTON: It is Ord. 24, rule 2(1): "Subject to the
21 provisions of this rule and of rule 4, the parties to an
22 action between whom pleadings are closed must make
23 discovery by exchanging lists of documents and,
24 accordingly, each party must, within 14 days after the
25 pleadings in the action are deemed to be closed as between
26 him and any other party" ---
27
28 MS. STEEL: Sorry, can Mr. Rampton read slowly?
29
30 MR. RAMPTON: None of this matters; "... make and serve on that
31 other party a list of the documents which are or have been
32 in his possession, custody or power relating to any matter
33 in question between them in the action."
34
35 Then, my Lord, if one looks at the note on page 437 at
36 24/2/5, one sees this, the quote from the rule: "'Relating
37 to any matter in question between them' - these words
38 refer, not to the subject-matter of an action, but to the
39 questions in the action". Then there is an example. "They
40 are not limited to documents which would be admissible in
41 evidence (Financiere du Pacifique v. Peruvian Guano Co.
42 (1882) 11 QBD, page 55, per Lord Esher, MR, O'Rourke v.
43 Darbishire (1920) AC 581, page 630) nor to those which
44 would prove or disprove any matter in question: any
45 document which, it is reasonable to suppose, 'contains
46 information which may enable the party (applying for
47 discovery) either to advance his own case or to damage that
48 of his adversary, if it is a document which may fairly lead
49 him to a train of enquiry which may have either of those
50 two consequences' must be disclosed". Then they quote the
51 Peruvian Guano case again. So, my Lord, if there is a
52 press cutting -----
53
54 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes, I have to confess you have read that to
55 me before and it has completely slipped my mind.
56
57 MR. RAMPTON: It is the whole basis on which we have made
58 discovery in this case; not that the documents are
59 admissible or probative of anything, but that they relate
60 in that indirect way to an issue in the case.
