Day 124 - 10 May 95 - Page 40


     
     1   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  No.  This was disclosable the moment it came
     2        into your possession.  It may or may not have made any
     3        difference to the course of the trial.
     4
     5   MS. STEEL:  With respect, firstly this must be in the
     6        Corporation's possession, seeing it is published by them.
     7
     8   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  That does not make any difference to the
     9        discovery.
    10
    11   MS. STEEL:  The other thing is that I am quite sure the
    12        Plaintiffs do not disclose documents before they have had a
    13        chance to read them.  When we get documents we have to read
    14        them to know whether they are relevant or not.
    15
    16   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  When did you get this?
    17
    18   MS. STEEL:  To be honest I have not even seen it, so that shows
    19        we only got it recently.
    20
    21   MR. MORRIS:  I cannot remember; a few days ago.
    22
    23   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  If you cannot tell me that you had better let
    24        Mr. Morris make the point, rather than seek to make it
    25        yourself.
    26
    27   MR. MORRIS:  I cannot remember the exact date, but it is a few
    28        days ago.
    29
    30   MS. STEEL:  The reason -----
    31
    32   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  In this case once you have read it, and you
    33        see "We care about the ozone layer", and you think it is of
    34        some relevance, which you must do or you would not have put
    35        it to the witness, you should disclose it to the other
    36        side.  I suggest you leave it there.
    37
    38   MR. MORRIS:  We do our best to get documents.  It is in our
    39        interest to get documents as soon as possible to the other
    40        side, but we cannot always do it.
    41
    42   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  The point being made is if you had it a few
    43        days ago, and you know you are going to be cross-examining
    44        Mr. Beavers this week, you could have come in one morning,
    45        given it to Mrs. Brinley-Codd and said:  "We have just
    46        found this.  Here is a copy for you".
    47
    48   MS. STEEL:  I really do not think it is fair we are continually
    49        being criticised, particularly by Mr. Rampton, for taking a
    50        couple of days to disclose documents, when the Plaintiffs 
    51        are continually disclosing things as their witnesses gets 
    52        into the witness boxes, which, quite obviously, they just 
    53        had for years.  I really think it is double-standards by
    54        Mr. Rampton and he should not be allowed to keep
    55        complaining about this, and we should not be being under
    56        pressure over it.
    57
    58   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  The reason I am pressing it home is, whatever
    59        may or may not have happened on the other side, it appears
    60        even now, during this argument, you are not accepting that

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