Day 146 - 03 Jul 95 - Page 35


     
     1   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  If I feel I need to look at it I will.
     2
     3   MR. ATKINSON:   The other reference is to the supplementary
     4        statement of Mr. Bishop.  It is paragraph 2 of that
     5        statement and also to a second supplementary statement of
     6        20th May 1995 which deals specifically with the question of
     7        whether Ms. Steel and Mr. Morris were signatories to the
     8        London Greenpeace bank account.
     9
    10        That is the basis for including those extra things in that
    11        list.  The question of what evidence there is to support
    12        that, of course, is not a matter at this stage to be
    13        determined.  The question is we do have a basis for making
    14        this application for discovery.
    15
    16        As far as all the other documents are concerned, the reason
    17        that we ask for things like agendas, minutes, notes, is
    18        based partly on photographs and videos that we say show the
    19        Defendants are involved in demonstrations and other
    20        activities, also their cross-examination of, for example,
    21        Mr. Stein where they went on and on about the question of
    22        were there any minutes, were there not agendas being drawn
    23        up, or whatever.
    24
    25        That is not a silly little point of, "Well, because they
    26        asked for it we ask for it too"; but the reason we do ask
    27        for it is partly that there is reference in the statements
    28        of our private investigators to there being an agenda and
    29        to Ms. Steel taking minutes, but also it shows the sort of
    30        thing that the Defendants think is likely to be thrown up
    31        by meetings and it shows, therefore, some indication of
    32        what they might do themselves if they were having a
    33        meeting.  Then we also have seen from newspaper articles
    34        the sort of demonstrations that go on, also from one's own
    35        eyes outside court.
    36
    37        So all these things that are being asked for are asked for
    38        for two reasons, one, because they may well contain
    39        relevant information in themselves, but also because the
    40        very fact of the Defendants having them in their
    41        possession, custody or control may give rise per se to an
    42        inference that they are involved in some sort of campaign,
    43        unless some sort of explanation can be given as to why they
    44        have all this material within their possession, custody and
    45        control relating to McDonald's.
    46
    47        It may be, my Lord, that this is all rather academic in the
    48        sense it may be that the Defendants are quite happy to say
    49        that they are involved, actively involved, in a campaign
    50        against McDonald's.  They may not wish to deny it.  They 
    51        may be very proud of it.  It may not come to a great 
    52        debate.  What one would say, though, and this is an 
    53        important point, is that when we are thinking of
    54        possession, custody or control by the Defendants'
    55        documents, we certainly have in mind documents that may be
    56        at the offices of London Greenpeace or the McLibel support
    57        campaign and other materials that are in the possession of
    58        other members of those groups.  That is not a point for
    59        today, my Lord, because it may well be that there will be
    60        some argument on that.  It is for the Defendants at this

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