Day 147 - 04 Jul 95 - Page 05

     
     1   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, most of this case is, rightly, being
     2        heard in public.  There is no way that that could possibly
     3        be avoided.  What I am anxious to avoid, wherever possible,
     4        is to avoid that kind of allegation which the Defendants
     5        are apt to make, (and, indeed, sometimes I am), with the
     6        freedom which one has in chambers, being either inhibited
     7        -- it will not inhibit the Defendants, but it will inhibit
     8        me -- because the public are here, or anyone else being in
     9        the court.
    10
    11        As I say, I do not feel terribly strongly about it.  I will
    12        say this, however, that we have made our submissions,
    13        particularly in relation to the Defendants' abuse of the
    14        transcript facility and CaseView, in chambers.  I did ask
    15        your Lordship to sit in chambers, as your Lordship will
    16        recall, particularly for that reason.  Although the
    17        Defendants will never accept that I do anything for their
    18        sake, it was, because I wanted the freedom to show your
    19        Lordship material and to make remarks about the conduct of
    20        Defendants which is not at the moment supported by
         evidence.  I wanted the freedom to do that, which I would
    22        have felt inhibited doing if we had been sitting in
    23        public.
    24
    25        My Lord, if the Defendants are going to respond to that
    26        area of the case in public, why then, the whole of
    27        everything that I have said should be made public as well.
    28
    29   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  If I decide that we should from now on be in
    30        open court, everything which was said in the course of
    31        yesterday is to be treated as if it was said in open
    32        court.  One cannot put the clock back, because the doors
    33        were closed with, I suppose, the usual sign on the door.
    34        I will give anyone, if I say we should go in open court,
    35        the opportunity to repeat what they said yesterday.
    36
    37   MR. RAMPTON:  I would not dream of doing that.
    38
    39   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I hope all parties would just say, no, we
    40        need not go through that.  But if anyone felt that they
         were prejudiced in any way by that fact -- I cannot see how
    42        they should be -- then I am not going to stop them.
    43
    44   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, we would be severely prejudiced, because
    45        your Lordship can be perfectly certain that the Defendants
    46        will ensure that only one side of what is said is
    47        reported.  It is essential that we should have the freedom
    48        to say -----
    49
    50   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I am saying now that I will give you the 
    51        opportunity to say it. 
    52 
    53   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, I am grateful.  I may say some more
    54        things by way of reply when the Defendants have answered
    55        what I have said.
    56
    57   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Is there anything which makes you think that
    58        applications, let us say, with regard to discovery and
    59        possible amendment, further and better particulars -- or,
    60        indeed, anything which was covered yesterday -- as a matter