Day 145 - 29 Jun 95 - Page 59
1 there is the question of who starts. That I think I would
2 leave to your Lordship on consideration of the long agendas
3 on both sides. I have a number of things which I want to
4 add to the agenda; one of which I am not willing to mention
5 in open court. I will not say anything about it now. If
6 the Defendants want to know what it is, we will write to
7 them and tell them.
8
9 MS. STEEL: Yes, we do want to know.
10
11 MR. RAMPTON: Then we will do that but I am not going to mention
12 it now -- not for my sake, but for theirs.
13
14 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What do you want to say about that?
15
16 MR. MORRIS: Certainly about that last matter ----
17
18 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No, not about that last matter, about whether
19 we sit in chambers or in open court.
20
21 MR. MORRIS: I think our position, in general, is always that
22 justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done.
23 The court should be open unless there is some particularly
24 good reason why something could not be said in the hearing
25 of the public.
26
27 I think that if Mr. Rampton wants to go into chambers on
28 specific points, then we should discuss that. We should
29 start off in public and if there is an item on the agenda,
30 or whatever, that is particularly sensitive to the
31 Plaintiffs for some reason, it is then that we should
32 discuss going into chambers or not. Obviously, in general,
33 the court should be open unless there is particular good
34 reason why it should not be.
35
36 MR. RAMPTON: Mr. Morris does not have the experience that your
37 Lordship and I have. He does know, however, what your
38 Lordship says -----
39
40 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Let me hear what Ms. Steel has to say.
41
42 MR. RAMPTON: I am sorry, yes.
43
44 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Do you want to say anything, Ms. Steel?
45
46 MS. STEEL: I agree with Mr. Morris on this point.
47
48 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What I will do is I will hear the argument in
49 chambers because they are all interlocutory matters and
50 there need be no anxiety about speaking in code and such
51 matters. When I have heard the argument, I will consider
52 whether I should deliver my ruling on all the matters in
53 due course in open court so that that is public knowledge.
54 That is the course I propose to take. We will have the
55 argument in chambers and then I will consider any
56 application or, in any event, what my own view is as to
57 whether my ruling, when I do deliver it, should be in
58 chambers or not.
59
60 MR. MORRIS: We have just one more last thing, whatever matter
