Day 012 - 18 Jul 94 - Page 53
1 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I think you are concerning yourself unduly.
All that has been suggested is that someone else drafted
2 it. Until I hear to the contrary, if I am told, as this
witness has told me, that he thinks that is Jim Mattox's
3 signature on the bottom, I will assume whether or not he
drafted it, he read it and he approved of its contents.
4 Do you actually need more than that?
5 MR. MORRIS: I think that is quite reasonable.
6 MR. JUSTICE BELL: That is why I asked the question. You heard
me put what often happens in this country. It might not
7 have been read by the person whose signature appears at
the bottom at all or whose purported signature appears
8 there.
9 MR. MORRIS: Mr. Gardner is also being criticised because he
may be a vegetarian, which implies that if Mr. Horwitz is
10 a meat eater we should not take what he says seriously.
11 MR. JUSTICE BELL: It will go into the pot, you can both stir
the pot, one in one direction and the other in the other
12 and I will make of it what I will.
13 MR. RAMPTON: It is right that the defendants should fully
understand what I am doing. It is not something I would
14 normally do. I am doing it for two reasons. First,
Mr. Gardner may not appear in this court, in which case
15 I am entitled to lead evidence as to his credibility on
the issues, if is a Civil Evidence Act witness; second,
16 and just as important, I am doing it (as I did in the
case of Mr. Lipsett) so that the witness, Mr. Gardner, if
17 he does come to this court or even if he does not, may
have notice of what some of my cross-examination will be.
18 That is an exceptional advantage or benefit which is
conferred on the defendants. It is best they appreciate
19 it.
20 (To the witness): Mr. Horwitz, I cannot remember -----
21 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You understand that? If Mr. Gardner was
coming here, some of this might be avoided by just being
22 put to him in the cross-examination. If, in fact, he may
not come (and the most anyone can say at the moment is
23 that he may not come because you have, for all I know,
just out of circumspection made him subject to a Civil
24 Evidence Act Notice, but the sooner this is brought out,
the better), if you are not going call him, at least you
25 have plenty of time, if you choose, to get a further
statement from him making his own comment on these
26 matters. So it does not just come out later in the day
when it is too late to do anything about it.
27
MS. STEEL: I understand he can bring up things relating to
28 Mr. Gardner's character if he has some evidence to suggest
there is something funny going on. Basically, unless he
29 has some evidence that this letter was not written by Jim
Mattox, what is the point in asking Mr. Horwitz because
30 how is he going to know?
