Day 250 - 15 May 96 - Page 63
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2 MR. MORRIS: A5 is not openable. That is all.
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4 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Very well.
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6 MR. MORRIS: Two sides of A5.
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8 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Can you give me an estimate of further
9 cross-examination of Mr. Nicholson? Do your best.
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11 MS. STEEL: I do not know, there is quite a lot to go, to be
12 honest, because there is the counterclaim stuff. And
13 I have not finished.
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15 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What I suggest is we break off there, for
16 this afternoon anyway. We are not sitting tomorrow.
17 I will not come back to Mr. Nicholson for 3 quarters of an
18 hour on a day because one barely gets started again and one
19 is stopping. What I would like you to be prepared to do is
20 come back to Mr. Nicholson if we find we have something
21 like the best part of half a day at any day in the future,
22 unless you tell me, well, I was hoping to use this
23 afternoon to do this, that or the other, which you tell me
24 about. The obvious candidates for that in the immediate
25 future as possibilities are Friday afternoon, because I do
26 not know how long Ms Bramford will take, and any time which
27 is left next week between the end of Professor Naismith and
28 Wednesday evening, because Thursday and Friday Mr. Morris
29 has to attend to other matters.
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31 MS. STEEL: If I could say about Friday afternoon, if it is at
32 all possible we want to attend a legal meeting at 4 o'clock
33 in the afternoon.
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35 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I will be receptive to that. I am just
36 saying as a matter of general principle. What time is the
37 legal meeting?
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39 MS. STEEL: At four o'clock, but obviously we want a bit of time
40 to prepare.
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42 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, I do not think Ms. Bramford will be a
43 long witness at all now we have further information.
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45 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Be prepared for the real possibility we may
46 come back to Mr. Nicholson on Friday. Be prepared for the
47 real possibility, depending how long Professor Naismith
48 takes, that it may be some time next week to come back to
49 Mr. Nicholson. All this is assuming that Mr. Nicholson is
50 going to be here in court on those days.
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52 MR. RAMPTON: I think he is going to be here on Friday, I do
53 know that.
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55 MR. JUSTICE BELL: If there are days next week when he will not
56 be here anyway, Mr. Rampton, it would be helpful for you to
57 say in advance, if you can, because then we will know it is
58 not a possibility of him giving evidence on that day. I
59 would like him to be available if he can be.
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