DEFENDANTS IN AIRBUS LAWSUIT FILE EXPERT WITNESS REPORTS

OTTAWA, August 8, 1996 -- Counsel for the Government of Canada today filed in Montreal Superior Court expert evidence reports in the case of Brian Mulroney v. the Attorney General of Canada. A group of distinguished experts have prepared reports in response to the expert evidence filed by Mr. Mulroney's counsel in July.

The reports deal with various elements of Swiss Law, Canadian Law, and coverage in the Canadian media.

Specifically, Dr. Niklaus Schmid deals with the Swiss law governing the confidentiality requirements respecting letters of request. Dr. Schmid is a professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure at the University of Zurich.

Dennis O'Connor, Q.C., has reviewed the conduct of Kimberly Prost in her role as Senior Counsel and Director of the International Assistance Group. Mr. O'Connor served until this year as the Vice Chair of the Discipline Committee for the Law Society of Upper Canada. He has also served as a Provincial Judge and Deputy Magistrate in the Northwest Territories and is currently a practising barrister.

Michael Code has provided expert opinion on the appropriate standards of practice for Crown Counsels when undertaking legal work in matters such as the procedures followed by Kimberly Prost. Mr. Code has been the Assistant Deputy Attorney-General (Criminal Law) for Ontario; he has taught criminal law for 15 years and is presently a practising barrister.

Professor Raymond E. Brown has produced an opinion identifying appropriate common law legal principles on the law of defamation and the application of those principles to the facts. Raymond Brown teaches at the Faculty of Law at the University of Windsor and is the author of the two-volume text on The Law of Defamation in Canada.

Professor Sharon Williams explains the nature of the mutual legal assistance between states in criminal matters and the duty of the central authority in Canada when forwarding a request for legal assistance with respect to Canadian and international law. Sharon Williams is a Professor of International Law and International Criminal Law at Osgoode Hall Law School.

Professor Frederick Fletcher and Erin Research Inc. challenge the methodology and conclusions drawn by Doris Jeurgens of National Public Relations, the firm engaged by Mr. Mulroney. Using a statistical approach in their analysis of the tone and content of the news coverage, they conclude that the media was balanced and often supportive of Mr. Mulroney.

The next step in the litigation is the filing by the parties of their summaries of fact and law on August 27, followed by a pre-trial conference on August 28th.

Ref.: Cyrus Reporter
 Minister's Office
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