Day 250 - 15 May 96 - Page 19

     
     1        themselves, evidence in this case.  Therefore, it cannot be
     2        right to say that we cannot adduce evidence of what a
     3        witness was telling to Mr. Nicholson or, indeed,
     4        information that was being provided to the Company.  For
     5        example, the Plaintiffs have effectively had to waive
     6        privilege regarding the witnesses they have called of the
     7        documents which they prepared, the reports that they made,
     8        the notes that they made, their witnesses sent to the
     9        solicitors in contemplation of legal proceedings.  Of
    10        course, they had to waive that privilege because those
    11        matters are directly going to the heart of a number of
    12        issues in the case.  In fact, I do not think they ever
    13        claimed they were privileged.  So they were not waiving
    14        privilege; they were accepting these were relevant and had
    15        to be disclosed, with the proviso they scrubbed out a few
    16        parts which they said did not touch on relevant issues in
    17        the case.
    18
    19        The question really is, are our questions to the witness
    20        and our applications for any documents that may exist about
         matters which are relevant issues and, if they are
    22        relevant, in the unusual circumstances of what the issue
    23        includes what was being communicated to the Plaintiffs by
    24        their agents, whether it is through solicitors or not, is,
    25        of course, of direct relevance and we will be unable to --
    26        well, we will be unable to continue this part of the case
    27        before this issue has been legally resolved, unless, of
    28        course, it is resolved in our favour, because it would be
    29        an absurd situation.
    30
    31        So, I do not know what the best course of events is,
    32        whether we should leave this argument until we have had
    33        legal advice.
    34
    35   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I am going to rule on it now because, subject
    36        to anything you have to say to me, I do not have any doubt
    37        about it on the evidence which I have heard.
    38
    39   MS. STEEL:   Do not what, sorry?
    40
    MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Is there anything more you want to say,
    42        Mr. Morris?  I will give a short ruling.
    43
    44   MR. MORRIS:  No.
    45
    46             (Please see separate transcript for Ruling)
    47
    48   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I will take the break now until quarter past
    49        12 which, hopefully, will give you an opportunity to ring
    50        home and see if you can get Mr. Brett's number.  Unless you 
    51        ask Mr. Riley to ask me for more time, we will come back at 
    52        quarter past 12 and continue with Mr. Nicholson's 
    53        cross-examination.
    54
    55                         (Short adjournment)
    56
    57   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Have you had any luck with Mr. Brett?
    58
    59   MR. MORRIS:  No.  There is no one at my house and I could not
    60        get his number through Directory Inquiries.  It is