Day 020 - 28 Jul 94 - Page 26


     
     1        more important that there be advance notice then because
              Mr. Rampton should really have them before he starts
     2        examining in-chief.
 
     3   MS. STEEL:   I did not think we had to.
 
     4   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, very definitely so.
 
     5   MR. RAMPTON:  I have mentioned this before, but I will, if
              I may, make an observation at this stage.  It is not the
     6        defendants' fault that they do not understand it.  I make
              no criticism of them at all.  I know your Lordship knows
     7        this, but I say it so the defendants may understand what
              I, at any rate, believe to be the proper practice.  It is
     8        permissible in relation to credit and credit only.
 
     9   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, we are not talking about that now.
 
    10   MR. RAMPTON:  We are talking about the issue, so any document
              which is relevant to an issue must be disclosed in time so
    11        that I have a chance, before Dr. Gregory gives his
              evidence, to go through it and then go through it in his
    12        evidence.
 
    13   MS. STEEL:   If that is the case, it is still the fact that we
              keep  getting documents two seconds before the witness
    14        goes into the witness box.
 
    15   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  What I want you to be aware of from now on
              is that if you are cross-examining an expert as to his or
    16        her opinion or view of matters (which is what you are
              doing with Dr. Gregory and what you will clearly be doing
    17        in the future in the autumn), if you are going to put a
              document of any kind and, particularly, if it is a paper
    18        which you say contains an expert view of its own, the
              other side are to have it comfortably before the expert is
    19        called in-chief, so he or she can consider it and the
              plaintiffs' lawyers can consider it before he or she goes
    20        into the witness box, because it is a long time ago now
              since it was thought right that one should be able to
    21        spring a report on the witness in cross-examination.
 
    22        I happen to think it will probably be too much to expect
              you to be able to stick 100 per cent to that, because you
    23        are clearly getting assistance from other people.  One of
              those may have suddenly put into your hands a document,
    24        and I do not suppose Mr. Rampton will be immune from one
              of his experts suddenly remembering or thinking of some
    25        other paper which may help.  So it is probably going to be
              a two way thing, but, as a matter of policy and normal 
    26        procedure, you should do your best to marshal your 
              documents and experts' reports and serve them before the 
    27        witness you want to put them to goes into the witness box
              at all.  Do you understand?
    28
         MS. STEEL:   We will try, but I think that should also apply to
    29        the plaintiffs.  We keep getting documents off them right
              at the last minute.
    30
         MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Maybe.  It does not matter because it occurs

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