Day 052 - 21 Nov 94 - Page 60
1 Lordship says.
2
3 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Then Defendants have someone to cross-examine
4 on the arithmetic or the basis of it.
5
6 MR. RAMPTON: That may be the answer.
7
8 MR. JUSTICE BELL: But at the moment I am not disposed to look
9 at Mr. Van Erp again unless you say, "Well, he is in this
10 country, I will call him".
11
12 MR. RAMPTON: If there is another means of dealing with the
13 figures we will have a look at that. It may be we can
14 jettison him altogether. We will look at that overnight.
15 While we are on the question of Mr. Mallinson.
16
17 MR. MORRIS: We have not necessarily finished our comments about
18 Mr. Erp.
19
20 MR. RAMPTON: There is nothing more to be said about that.
21
22 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I will hear you in a moment about that.
23
24 MR. RAMPTON: While we are on Mr. Mallinson, my understanding is
25 we are 90 per cent sure that he can come back on Wednesday,
26 so he need not start on Friday, which means that Ms. Dibb
27 can go Thursday or Friday; whether she finishes on Friday
28 is quite another matter. We will have to wait and see
29 about that. At any rate she can get two days in a row, and
30 Mr. Mallinson on Monday and Wednesday; Professor Ashworth
31 on Tuesday afternoon. It means that we will have a blank
32 for Tuesday morning, but perhaps no harm done really.
33
34 This also I should say about Mr. Mallinson, and I say it
35 now so that the Defendants do not make another of their
36 ill-founded accusations about confusion and surprise in
37 their ranks. It is presently my intention having looked
38 again at Mr. Mallinson's evidence and at the size of the
39 issue on trees, or rather I should say the nature of the
40 issue on trees, it is presently my intention with your
41 Lordship's leave not to ask Mr. Mallinson any questions
42 in-chief, but to ask your Lordship to allow his statement
43 to stand as his evidence-in-chief and offer him for
44 cross-examination.
45
46 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. I said I am prepared for either party
47 to do that.
48
49 MR. RAMPTON: Then I give fair warning that that is what I shall
50 do, and that if Mr. Mallinson is here on Monday the
51 Defendants must be prepared to cross-examine him on that
52 day in the morning.
53
54 MR. JUSTICE BELL: If I have learnt anything from this case it
55 is to wait and see how long witnesses do in fact take. We
56 will see how Ms. Dibb goes on Thursday and Friday.
57
58 So far as Mr. Van Erp is concerned, it is generally up to
59 any party to decide who they call or do not call. What
60 I have indicated is that unless Mr. Rampton can persuade me
