Day 030 - 03 Oct 94 - Page 09

     
     1        extremely reluctant to take that course in this case.  In
     2        fact, I find it very difficult to see how I could possibly
     3        take it, in fairness, if evidence you wanted to call was
     4        on something which was central to the case because it
     5        would be absurd to spend months trying this case, then for
     6        one side or the other to be able to go away and say:  "It
     7        is all very well the judge deciding that, but he did not
     8        let me call this bit of evidence on the topic".  No-one
     9        would be happy.  If I decided against you on that point
    10        you would be saying:  "The judge did not let me call the
    11        evidence", and McDonald's would be saying:  "It is said we
    12        have not been vindicated because not all the evidence was
    13        called" for exactly the same reasons.  I do not suppose it
    14        will happen.
    15
    16        I would be very disinclined to stop Mr. Rampton calling
    17        additional evidence if he suddenly thought of something
    18        halfway through the case, because if I found for you on
    19        that point, McDonald's might say:  "It would be very
    20        different if we had been able to call our witness on that
         point". Do you understand?  So I cannot take the firm line
    22        in this case which would be the sanction in other cases.
    23        I am very dependent on the goodwill of the parties in
    24        doing their very best to give ample warning of the
    25        evidence which their witnesses propose to give.
    26
    27   MS. STEEL:   We feel that the new statements do arise out of
    28        what their witnesses have said in court; also we did put
    29        the vast majority, if not all, of the documents referred
    30        to, to the witnesses, the Plaintiffs' witnesses when they
    31        were in the witness box.  For example, the World Health
    32        Organisation report, the European Code against Cancer,
    33        I think the US Academy of Sciences as well.  I do not
    34        think anything that -- I do not really think anything that
    35        new has come in that we have not asked their witnesses
    36        about at all.
    37
    38   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  What I propose to do, without hearing any
    39        further argument from Mr. Rampton, is I suggest you call
    40        Mr. Cannon.  At the end of the evidence-in-chief
         Mr. Rampton can tell me the general areas upon which he
    42        feels that he needs to take further instructions and be
    43        further prepared.  I regret to say that may well mean that
    44        Mr. Cannon will then leave court and have to come back at
    45        some time in the future which we will do our very best to
    46        arrange, according to his convenience.
    47
    48        Can I say this?  Whatever the rights and wrongs of the
    49        matter, I would be receptive in this case (and I have, so
    50        far as you are concerned, already been receptive) to 
    51        anyone saying:  "I need more time before I cross-examine" 
    52        because I realise it is, even with all the forewarning in 
    53        the world, a complicated case.
    54
    55   MR. MORRIS:  We will call our witnesses.
    56
    57   MR. RAMPTON:  I would like to say two things first, if I may:
    58        First, of course, Ms. Steel is quite wrong in supposing
    59        that this new material, particularly from Professor
    60        Crawford but also from Mr. Cannon, arises out of the