Day 305 - 25 Nov 96 - Page 13

     
     1        publications.
     2
     3        Now, I am not saying that is so, but I am just trying to
     4        help you by suggesting that may be part of the way in which
     5        the case is put against you, arising from the alleged
     6        admission of production.
     7
     8   MR. MORRIS:  I would say, first of all, alleged admission cannot
     9        refer to a time when Ms. Steel has testified that she was
    10        not involved with the group.
    11
    12   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I have got that.  But what I am doing is
    13        giving you the opportunity to suppose all that which you
    14        deny and say is nonsense anyway were right and I came down
    15        and said "I think you probably were part of the team which
    16        produced this leaflet in '86 and '87", then I can see
    17        Mr. Rampton would say that that makes you responsible for
    18        any publication of the leaflet thereafter falling within
    19        the relevant period.
    20
    MR. MORRIS:  First of all, I would say that Mr. Rampton
    22        therefore has to show where is the evidence of which
    23        meeting that I attended which made which decision which
    24        resulted in which act, firstly -- especially in the light,
    25        of course, of Mr. Gravett's evidence that I was not
    26        involved in production or publication.  Secondly, I would
    27        say that the act of production, which has been pleaded as
    28        an act in itself, there is no pleading in the Statement of
    29        Claim about resultant publication, there are no particulars
    30        and no pleading; therefore, they are saying (and they are
    31        stuck with it) that the production is the act which leads
    32        to the cause of action, and that is outside the limitation
    33        period -- sorry, no.  The point I am making is that, first
    34        of all, there is no cause of action, because they only
    35        plead production, and they have not pleaded resultant
    36        publication for that.  They may have meant production in
    37        1990, or something, but they did not bring any evidence to
    38        show that.  Therefore, they cannot shift the goal posts
    39        just when it suits them because they have failed to make a
    40        case.  Obviously, if they had shown me printing the leaflet
         in 1989 or something ---
    42
    43   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  You see, what -----
    44
    45   MR. MORRIS:  -- they might have a case, relevant case.  Can
    46        I just finish this point?
    47
    48   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, please do.
    49
    50   MR. MORRIS:  So, first of all, they have got no cause of action 
    51        because they have not shown what they are talking about, 
    52        and, therefore, there was no case for me to answer. 
    53        Therefore, on the basis of the Plaintiffs' pleaded and
    54        particularised case and the evidence based upon those,
    55        there was no need for me to go into the witness box.  They
    56        cannot now move the goal posts because they have failed to
    57        provide the evidence.  That is the first point.
    58
    59   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Just pause there -- because in 3B of their
    60        Re-amended Statement of Claim, 3A being the allegation of