Day 037 - 14 Oct 94 - Page 44
1 Statement of Claim, "concerning bulk and ease of chewing
2 is surely a matter of personal opinion". Do you believe
3 that bulk and ease of chewing is a matter of personal
4 opinion?
5 A. I do.
6
7 Q. Now item 5 on page 8 of your statement refers to -----
8
9 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I was going to mention this some time, but I
10 will use this as the opportunity to do so: If either side
11 wishes me to go to a McDonald's restaurant completely
12 unarranged and eat or try any specific McDonald's meal or
13 look at any part of the way they work, I will do so. It
14 will not be an arranged visit. I will just pick a time
15 and place convenient to me and go some time during the
16 trial.
17
18 MR. RAMPTON: We were conscious your Lordship might make that
19 suggestion at some stage during the case. There are, of
20 course, other areas of the case which your Lordship might
21 be interested in in terms of a view. If your Lordship
22 thought it helpful to do any of those journeys, as it
23 were, then we will arrange it.
24
25 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I would rather it was not arranged, I
26 think. If there is a purpose in arranging it, then do
27 so. But it might just be better if I went at whatever
28 time suits me, but what I suggest is we go on through the
29 evidence because in the course of evidence points may crop
30 up which I ought to pay attention to if I did go.
31
32 MR. RAMPTON: Yes. The difficulty, I anticipate, about an
33 unarranged or unannounced visit by a tribunal of fact in a
34 case like this is that it is not known by the parties what
35 it is that the tribunal of fact saw when it was there.
36
37 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I would tell you afterwards if that helped.
38 Anyway, we will come back to it. I merely raise it now
39 because no-one is to assume that I am greatly familiar
40 with McDonald's restaurants and the meals which they sell.
41
42 MR. RAMPTON: I am afraid I had assumed the contrary, my Lord.
43
44 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I will be quite candid. I think I may have
45 been in a McDonald's restaurant, but I think I may have
46 been in the one down the Strand just before Charring
47 Cross, but it is so long ago, I do not have any confident
48 recollection of it.
49
50 MR. RAMPTON: One outcome of the case might be to increase
51 McDonald's customer base!
52
53 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I do not know.
54
55 MR. MORRIS: When I said "Oh, no" that was not because I was
56 against the idea; it is just I thought I might have to eat
57 one of their hamburgers!
58
59 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I do not think I am in any way indicating
60 any view on any part of the evidence if I say I do not
