Day 157 - 18 Jul 95 - Page 59
1
2 MR. RAMPTON: It is Thursday I am worrying about, but we will do
3 the best we can.
4
5 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Do you want to respond on the question of
6 transcripts this evening or do it in the morning?
7
8 MS. STEEL: Perhaps I could reply. I think Dave might have
9 something a bit more lengthy, but if I reply to a couple of
10 things that were said. Mr. Rampton was saying that this is
11 about their refusal to go on paying for us to exploit the
12 transcripts, as he puts it. We have actually said that if
13 the Plaintiffs will let us have copies of the transcripts
14 we will photocopy them and then return them to the
15 Plaintiffs so it will not cost them anything. We have also
16 asked them to agree to allow the transcript company,
17 Barnett Lenton, to supply us with copies of the transcripts
18 at the reduced rate immediately they are produced rather
19 than having to wait three weeks by which time they will be
20 of little use in preparing for cross-examination. The
21 Plaintiffs have refused to agree to either of those
22 courses. So this, quite obviously, is not a matter of them
23 just claiming that they do not want to pay for our copies
24 any more. It is clearly a matter of them trying to
25 sabotage our defence and preparations for our defence.
26
27 Mr. Rampton said it would not affect the conduct of our
28 defence because anybody who has been in court taking even a
29 half careful note will know that they can pick up telephone
30 and they can say: "Mr. So and So said such and such. Can
31 you deal with that?" If he is quite happy for us to do
32 that from our note, why is it that he does not want us to
33 be able to do that from the transcript. I would have
34 thought he would prefer us to do it from the transcript
35 because they are likely to be more accurate than
36 handwritten notes that we are making in a complete rush
37 while we are trying to cross-examine witnesses and think of
38 questions to ask.
39
40 The only conclusion that we can draw from their not wanting
41 us to read out sections of the transcripts of the trial
42 over the telephone is that they do not want accurate
43 reporting of what their witnesses are saying. That can be
44 the only result, unless the proceedings do slow to such an
45 extent that we can write things down word for word.
46
47 Just on the subject of Mr. Rampton writing to the Lord
48 Chancellor, I am not really sure that he has any
49 entitlement to write to the Lord Chancellor concerning
50 this.
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52 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Anyone is entitled to write to the Lord
53 Chancellor about anything, are they not? You have chosen
54 to do so, surely the opposing party can as well? Whether
55 the Lord Chancellor, either himself or through one of his
56 offices, chooses to respond and, if so, in what terms is
57 entirely a matter for him.
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59 MS. STEEL: As I understand it, in the Bar Council codes of
60 conduct for England and Wales it does say in 2.1:
