Day 121 - 04 May 95 - Page 48
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2 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I just cannot say. I would have to look
3 through it.
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5 MR. MORRIS: You see, we cannot trace Helen Caulderwood. She
6 has made statements during that investigation taken by
7 McDonald's themselves.
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9 MR. JUSTICE BELL: It is so long since I have looked at them,
10 I cannot recall, but if there is a statement from Helen
11 Caulderwood there and/or one from the Manager, you can
12 certainly put Civil Evidence Act Notices on those. But, I
13 mean, we are dealing with balance of probabilities only.
14 There is a conviction ---
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16 MR. MORRIS: Yes.
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18 MR. JUSTICE BELL: -- there are convictions against the people
19 concerned.
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21 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, yes. What is more, the convictions are
22 in a defamation action, incontrovertible evidence, the
23 event occurred. The sentence on the Manager was very grave
24 -- it was six months imprisonment -- and on the
25 subordinates 120 hours Community Service and the other one
26 acquitted, so one can draw one's own conclusions from
27 that.
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29 MR. JUSTICE BELL: That is why I said it is on balance of
30 probabilities. Mr. Rampton has said it for me and said it
31 for you; it is not going to be very difficult for me to
32 infer on balance of probabilities that it was initiated by
33 the Manager who used a more junior member of the staff to
34 implement the plan.
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36 What we will have to see is where in the case we go from
37 there, but I do not think you need anticipate difficulty
38 about that. I would not bother with Civil Evidence Act
39 Notices there because if we just take the very bare bones
40 of it, you have -----
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42 MR. MORRIS: Helen Caulderwood certainly gives the context in
43 why she felt she was being pressurised to do that, which
44 was to boost profits and takings in competition with Burger
45 King. Therefore, on that reason alone, I would want to
46 have a Civil Evidence Act Notice -----
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48 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I probably will not have much difficulty with
49 that because if you put one of your obvious competitors out
50 of action for the day, the chances are you are going to
51 sell more burgers yourself.
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53 MR. MORRIS: Maybe it will save time if I just ask the witness.
54 (To the witness): Would you accept -----
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56 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No, do not ask him to do that because it
57 would not matter whether he accepts it or not; I have to
58 make judgment on it. You can remind me in due course that
59 I expressed the view that, on balance of probabilities, it
60 was done at the instigation of the Manager using a more
