QUESTION Save as set out below, none of the documents referred to in this Question are produced for the purpose of this Assessment You are a trainee solicitor with the firm of ULaw LLP of 36 Avenue Way, Weyford, Guildshire GU18 9ZX Your supervising solicitor, Elisa Corvalan,hands to you a proof of evidence ( Document A belowalong with Documents B, C, D and E referred to in it) Elisa Corvalan explains that she recently took the proof of evidence at a face to face meeting withHanna Zeller, the managing director of a local company, Exercise Eat Limited ( E E ) The client company owns and runs a sports arena that includes a vegan restaurant Your client has made a claim in the High Court against Data Software Knowledge Limited ( DSK ) in respect of two computer systems that DSK supplied and installed for E E in 2022 The claim, as stated in the Particulars of Claim, is based on DSK's breach of an oral contract which is detailed in Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence Her proof also includes details of the different damages and losses claimed The allegations of breach of contract in the Particulars of Claim are based on the report of Christina Kiamou( Document D below) that your client obtained before instructing your firm DSK's Defence is that neither system had any bugs, errors or defects DSK alleges in its Defence that the client caused all the problems and losses they experienced themselves by E E's staff failing to follow DSK's training and instructions manuals, as well as inputting data incorrectly In its Reply to the Defence, the clientalleges that the training provided by DSK was inadequate and inaccurate and either caused and or contributed to its losses In addition, DSK alleges in its Defence that the contract was made on its standard printed terms and conditions which had previously been supplied to Hanna Zeller It relies on an exclusion of liability clause in those standard terms and conditions DSK makes no admissions in its Defence as to the amount of losses and damages claimed It alleges that E E failed to mitigate its losses The case has been allocated to the multi track and case management directions have been given Standard disclosure and inspection have been given Your firm has recently obtained a written report from Christina Kiamou that complies with Part 35 of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 The conclusions in the report are the same as she drew in her earlier report to your client dated 14 January 2022 ( Document D below) Your client intends to rely on Christina Kiamou's evidence at trial Neither report has so far been shown to DSK The court has not permitted ether party to rely on expert evidence on the issue of quantum of damages Your firm is now preparing to convert Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence into a formal witness statement to be exchanged in due course The only other witness statement to be exchanged will be made by the company's Chief Technology Officer and Head of the IT Department, Josh Adamson Both will be called to give oral evidence at trial Elisa Corvalan asks you to study Hanna Zeller'sproof of evidence Elisa Corvalan asks you to give a formal oral presentation to the small legal team working on this case The purpose of the oral presentation is to address the following three points You must describe how you will re draft Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence to convert it into a witness statement that is compliant with the following provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998, Practice Direction 32, paragraphs 17 2, 18 1, 18 2, 18 4, 19 1(6), 19 2 and 20 2 Elisa Corvalan has emphasised that she requires you to address only these provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules, 1998 in this part of your presentation The purpose is to ensure that all the team are up to speed on drafting the key formal parts of a witness statement by you illustrating each by reference to the facts of E E's case As to the content of Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence, you must identify any information that should not be included in her witness statement You must include a concise and precise explanation of why each piece of information that you identify should be omitted from her witness statement You must include suitable references to relevant law in your explanations As to the content of Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence, you must identify the admissible opinion evidence that you will include in Hanna Zeller's witness statement You must explain what considerations and weight the trial judge is likely to give that evidence You must include suitable references to relevant law in your explanations You should assume that when you give your presentation, each member of the legal team will be familiar with the case and will have in front of them a copy of the client's proof of evidence and the documents referred to in it that appear write a written transcript of the oral presentation that you would make in response to Elisa Corvalan's instructions Assume that you will make the oral presentation on the date that you submit your answer to this Portfolio Task NOTE TO CANDIDATES ON THE WORD COUNT FOR THIS TASK Do not include in your word count the following (a) any of the material that you copy directly from Documents A to E inclusive and (b) any material that you copy directly from the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 or any other legal authorities Document A Hanna M Zeller, managing director ofExercise Eat Limited( E E ), will say E E owns and manages a sports arena and vegan restaurant at The Park, Weyford, Guildshire GU2 1ZP The sports arena consists ofa spa, two swimming pools, a gym, four group exercise studios, as well as three indoor and five outdoor astro turf pitches for hockey, football, etc I use the spa myself at least twice a week and my teenage son plays football on an indoor pitch for a local club side most Saturdays In September 2022, E E decided that it needed to replace our outdated booking and management system for the restaurant with up to date and efficient hardware and software To that end, I attended The Big Data Expo at Olympia in London on 16 September 2022 It was the largest and best attended conference I have been to in thirty years of management with over one hundred trade stands After viewing several products being demonstrated at the Expo, I decided E E might acquire a system developed by Data Software Knowledge Limited( DSK )which operates as a specialist IT company from its main office at 69 The Fields, Crocus Road, Weyford, Guildshire GU75 8RR I had a long conversation with DSK's managing director, Paulina Dudek I described to her the set up with our sports arena and vegan restaurant I explained that E E needed hardware and software for the restaurant that would carry out the following basic tasks reserve a table (or more than one table) record the name and contact information of the customer making the booking transfer bar tabs to the correct tables and calculate what tables are available and when and for how long I also stressed to Paulina Dudek that at the time we were operating a paper based customer loyalty reward card scheme and, rather than move to a plastic reward card, which we did not see as having any marketing value for us, we wanted something hi tech I made it clear that any new system would need to tie loyalty rewards to the customer's own electronic account and be fully integrated with our point of sales applications Paulina Dudek told me that DSK's hardware and software system known as Cuisine Time Premier would meet all of E E's requirements I asked her the price to supply, install it and train our staff on its use She said it would be in the region of 34,500 I told her that I would get back to her I recall that as I was leaving DSK's stand, Paulina Dudek handed to me her company's brochure I had already collected numerous items at the Expo and read a few of them on the train on my way home I cannot recall specifically reading DSK's brochure Having looked, I accept that DSK's standard terms and conditions for doing business are at the back of its brochure However, Paulina Dudek's act of handing to me the brochure on 16 September 2022 did not incorporate those terms into the contract that E E entered into on 1 November 2022 with DSK and which I have detailed in the next paragraph After viewing several other possible systems for the restaurant, we decided to proceed with DSK In the meantime, we had started to look for a new booking system for the sports arena So, when I telephoned Paulina Dudek on 1 November 2022 to order the Cuisine Time Premier System, I also asked her if DSK could supply a suitable system for our sports arena Nothing was ever put in writing but all our company calls are recorded and I refer to the transcript of the call which is Document B below After ordering the systems, over the next few weeks there were large numbers of staff from DSK on our site installing them Some hardware was supplied, such as a new server and some computer terminals but otherwise the software was loaded onto our existing restaurant and sports facilities systems By 3 December 2022 both systems were ready to go live as DSK had completed our staff's training I arranged a bank transfer of 70,000 to DSK Unfortunately, neither system functioned properly after installation I had emails from Janis Beks, our restaurant manager and Olga Sevcova, our sports arena manager, in respect of issues that were never resolved by DSK Printed copies of these emails are Document C below From these emails it is clear that there was a wholesale failure by DSK to respond to the problems or treat them seriously It was therefore a reasonable step taken to mitigate our losses to employ additional staff to overcome the problems created by DSK's systems I met Janis on 16 December 2022 to discuss his email of the previous day He said that he had attended DSK's training with his staff on allocating loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account He was following both the training and DSK's instructions manual but the system would not allocate loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account In his opinion the problem was a fault in the software He insisted that the cost of reverting to the paper based customer loyalty reward card scheme should not come out of the budget for the restaurant I also met with Olga Sevcova on 11 December 2022 after I'd read her email I asked her what was causing the problems with the current time reports She said she did not know She had been told by the head of staff responsible for overseeing the bookings of the spa that he had that morning put two bookings for the next day in the system but three hours later the system had not updated tomorrow's spa bookings She also said that she had spent the last two days observing the members of staff responsible for the pitches input bookings, cancellations and other information into the system From those observations she was confident they had followed DSK's training and instructions manual However, when she looked at the system's subsequent booking summaries, they had not been updated for the pitches in question I have known both Janis and Olga for over ten years They are hardworking, honest and trustworthy Both trust their staff and are respected by them Olga iscurrently on long term sick leave from work I cannot fail to note that the documents I have seen from DSK's disclosure indicate an alarming lack of qualifications and experience of its trainers None have any teaching qualifications None are accredited by the British Computer Society, The Chartered Institute for IT We struggled through a very busy Christmas 2022 and New Year 2023 but from enquiries made by my staff under my direct supervision it was clear that problems with both systems were escalating As a result, the Board commissioned a report from an expert, Christina Kiamou ( Document D below) Acting on it, and following a Board resolution to do so, I wrote to Paulina Dudek at DSK on 29 January 2023 rejecting both systems and indicating that a claim for compensation would be made for our many losses Subsequently, I received the emails from Janis Beks, Olga Sevcova and Florian Kainz, our accountant, detailing various financial issues arising from the contract with DSK Printed copies of these are Document E below H M Zeller Hanna M Zeller Date Document B Transcript 1 November 2022 Me Hello, is that Paulina Her Yes, is that Hanna from The Big Data Expo at Olympia in September Me I'm impressed you remember Look, I'm calling about placing an order for your Cuisine Time Premier Systembut first I was wondering if your company is experienced in booking systems for sports arenas Her Yes, we are How's yours set up Me We have a spa and two swimming pools, a gym, four group exercise studios, as well as three indoor and five outdoor astro turf pitches for hockey, football and the like Her So, you'd want something like a hotel booking system for rooms but your customers would be booking the spa, a pool, the gym, a studio or a pitch Me Yes Her Then our First Reserve System is what you want Me So, it can be programmed to accurately record what's happening at any point in time for each individual facility Her Yes, it does exactly that Me We want to create electronic accounts for customers from the details they supply when booking Can your system do that Her No problem Our First Reserve System is precisely what you need Me So, could you do us a deal for both theCuisine Time Premier System and the First Reserve System including training our staff on their use Her I think I quoted you 34,500 for the restaurant when we met The First Reserve System normally starts at 30,000 but obviously increases according to the sophistication levels needed Yours are pretty high but how about 70,000 Me That includes hardware and software installation of both systems and staff training Her Yes, the whole lot Me What about a timescale Can the systems be up and running in time for Christmas Her What if we said the end of the first week in December at the latest Me Sounds like we have a deal Payment on completion Her OK, that's all agreed I'll get my head of installations to come over next week to start things off Me Great Speak to you soon Document C E MAILS in respect of issues that were never resolved by DSK Janis Beks's email of 6 December 2022 read as follows Sorry to report an initial problem with the system here We've discovered that none of the bar tabs have been transferred to the customer's table number Quite a few customers obviously thought we were providing free drinks We've had to insist on all payments being made at the bar but customers are not happy with this The total amount that we have lost through unaccounted for bar tabs is 1,298 Olga Sevcova's email of 8 December 2022 read as follows Hanna, there's a problem with the new system None of the customer's details recorded at the time of booking are being transferred to the customer's new electronic account We are having to enter all the details manually ourselves later This is very time consuming Olga Sevcova's email of 11 December 2022 read as follows We are now experiencing serious problems with current time reports for all facilities These are consistently showing some facilities booked when they are not For example, the system as I now look at it shows all facilities booked for the next 3 hours but I've checked and there's 1 indoor and 2 outdoor astro turf pitches not in use and 1 pitch has not in fact been reserved by any customers for the entire day Janis Beks's email of 15 December 2022 read as follows Please note that on settling their bill, the system fails to allocate loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account As a result, the previous paper based customer loyalty reward card scheme has been re introduced Olga Sevcova's email of 15 December 2022 read as follows The issues with the current time reports for all our facilities continue despite Data Software Knowledge's technicians saying it will soon be sorted I've had no choice but to employ an additional facilities manager to check all the bookings for the foreseeable future Janis Beks's email of 17 December 2022 read as follows The bar tabs are now the least of our worries The system is not keeping proper track of table availability and the reports we get are inaccurate and misleading Data Software Knowledge don't seem concerned that often we've been under booked and occasionally overbooked Like Olga, I've now had no choice but to employan additional reservations manager to supervise the reservations, at least during the crucial Christmas and the New Year periods Document D Report of Christina Kiamou, BSc, MSc Forensic IT Investigator Chartered Information Technology Professional, Fellow of the British Computer Society, Member of the Expert Witness Institute and Member of the Institution of Engineering Technology 25A Dene Drive, Weyford, Guildshire GU44 1QW Tele 0898123456 c t net com Exercise Eat Limited The Park, Weyford, Guildshire GU2 1ZP 14 January 2023 Dear Hanna Zeller, Thank you for your company's instructions to investigate the problems that you have had with the Cuisine Time Premier system and First Reserve System installed last December by Data Software Knowledge Limited The functions of both systems centre on the input, secure storage and output of many types of information, in large volumes but with little computation By far the most important type of computation occurs in the financial accounting programmes where straightforward calculations of money, stock, etc take place Neither system possess a highly complex computational function in the sense that very difficult and demanding complex mathematical equations have to be processed at high speed However, high speed accurate transfers are obviously required of the restaurant bar tabs and table availability, and likewise for the current time reports for the sports arena facilities The software in both systems is data driven The software should have been written to work with your restaurant and sports arena requirements with the relevant data stored in the database of each system The modern practice of software engineering is to use data driven software as far as possible Following my detailed examination and testing of both systems, I have reached the following conclusions (a) each contains high levels of bugs, errors and defects which created the discrepancies, etc that you encountered (b) each has suffered failures of internal mechanisms which were intended to ensure the reliability of your data (c) the systems have not enabled such discrepancies to be detected, accurately identified and or recorded either reliably, consistently or at all and (d) there are weaknesses and risks of errors and other sources of unreliability within both systems As I have indicated, bugs, errors and defects in the systems have caused the discrepancies, shortfalls, etc that you have suffered I would summarise these as follows RESTAURANT Bar tab bug none of the bar tabs were transferred to the customer's table number Table availability bug the system does not keep proper track of table availability and the reports are inaccurate and misleading and Loyalty rewards bug on settling a bill, the system fails to allocate loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account SPORTS ARENA Current time reports bug current time reports for facilities consistently show some facilities booked when they were not and Electronic account bug none of the customer's details recorded at the time of booking are transferred to the customer's new electronic account In my opinion there is the possibility of bugs, errors and defects existing in both systems that I have not yet discovered In conclusion, neither system meets your requirements and I recommend both are rejected and replaced Please let me know if I can assist any further C Kiamou Christina Kiamou Document E E MAILS detailing various financial issues arising from the contract with DSK Janis Beks's email of 14 May 2023 read as follows The replacement IT booking system has now been installed at a total cost of 39,451 After speaking to Florian Kainz, I estimate that we lost 3,300 in staff time wasted trying to deal with all the problems with the last system, particularly having to go back to using the paper basedcustomer loyalty reward card scheme Olga Sevcova's email of 3 June 2023 read as follows I'm pleased to say that the new IT system we've had installed, albeit at a cost of 51,265,is working well It is so very much better than Data Software Knowledge's system The total salary we ended up paying to the additional facilities manager we had to employ whilst sorting out the last IT system was 9,190 Florian Kainz's email of 19 June 2023 read as follows I've now completed the calculations for what we lost due to the Data Software Knowledge Limited fiasco The loss of profits we suffered based on the number of facilities undersold and loss of custom to the sports arena was 41,295 It was worse with the restaurant, where ultimately the profits lost based on the number of tables undersold and loss of custom was 54,200 Olga Sevcova's email of 26 June 2023 read as follows I've now had a chance to meet with Florian Kainz to look at the time our staff wasted trying to sort out all the issues that came up with Data Software Knowledge Limited The most significant item was manually creating customer electronic accounts All in all, we put the figure at 3,925 Janis Beks's email of 26 June 2023 read as follows Apologies for the delay I can confirm that the salary paid to the additional reservations manager over Christmas 2022 and the New Year 2023 totalled 5,470

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QUESTION Save as set out below, none of the documents referred to in this Question are produced for the purpose of this Assessment. You are

QUESTION

Save as set out below, none of the documents referred to in this Question are produced for the purpose of this Assessment.

You are a trainee solicitor with the firm of ULaw LLP of 36 Avenue Way, Weyford, Guildshire GU18 9ZX.

Your supervising solicitor, Elisa Corvalan,hands to you a proof of evidence (Document A belowalong withDocuments B, C, D and E referred to in it). Elisa Corvalan explains that she recently took the proof of evidence at a face-to-face meeting withHanna Zeller, the managing director of a local company, Exercise & Eat Limited ("E&E").

The client company owns and runs a sports arena that includes a vegan restaurant.

Your client has made a claim in the High Court against Data Software Knowledge Limited ("DSK") in respect of two computer systems that DSK supplied and installed for E&E in 2022.

The claim, as stated in the Particulars of Claim, is based on DSK's breach of an oral contract which is detailed in Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence. Her proof also includes details of the different damages and losses claimed.

The allegations of breach of contract in the Particulars of Claim are based on the report of Christina Kiamou(Document D below) that your client obtained before instructing your firm.

DSK's Defence is that neither system had any bugs, errors or defects.

DSK alleges in its Defence that the client caused all the problems and losses they experienced themselves by E&E's staff failing to follow DSK's training and instructions manuals, as well as inputting data incorrectly.In its Reply to the Defence, the clientalleges that the training provided by DSK was inadequate and inaccurate and either caused and/or contributed to its losses.

In addition, DSK alleges in its Defence that the contract was made on its standard printed terms and conditions which had previously been supplied to Hanna Zeller. It relies on an exclusion of liability clause in those standard terms and conditions.

DSK makes no admissions in its Defence as to the amount of losses and damages claimed. It alleges that E&E failed to mitigate its losses.

The case has been allocated to the multi-track and case management directions have been given. Standard disclosure and inspection have been given.

Your firm has recently obtained a written report from Christina Kiamou that complies with Part 35 of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998. The conclusions in the report are the same as she drew in her earlier report to your client dated 14 January 2022 (Document D below). Your client intends to rely on Christina Kiamou's evidence at trial. Neither report has so far been shown to DSK.

The court has not permitted ether party to rely on expert evidence on the issue of quantum of damages.

Your firm is now preparing to convert Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence into a formal witness statement to be exchanged in due course. The only other witness statement to be exchanged will be made by the company's Chief Technology Officer and Head of the IT Department, Josh Adamson. Both will be called to give oral evidence at trial.

Elisa Corvalan asks you to study Hanna Zeller'sproof of evidence.

Elisa Corvalan asks you to give a formal oral presentation to the small legal team working on this case. The purpose of the oral presentation is to address the following three points.

You must describe how you will re-draft Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence to convert it into a witness statement that is compliant with the following provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998, Practice Direction 32, paragraphs 17.2, 18.1, 18.2, 18.4, 19.1(6), 19.2 and 20.2. Elisa Corvalan has emphasised that she requires you to address only these provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules, 1998 in this part of your presentation. The purpose is to ensure that all the team are up to speed on drafting the key formal parts of a witness statement by you illustrating each by reference to the facts of E&E's case.

As to the content of Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence, you must identify any information that should not be included in her witness statement.You must include a concise and precise explanation of why each piece of information that you identify should be omitted from her witness statement. You must include suitable references to relevant law in your explanations.

As to the content of Hanna Zeller's proof of evidence, you must identify the admissible opinion evidence that you will include in Hanna Zeller's witness statement. You must explain what considerations and weight the trial judge is likely to give that evidence. You must include suitable references to relevant law in your explanations.

You should assume that when you give your presentation, each member of the legal team will be familiar with the case and will have in front of them a copy of the client's proof of evidence and the documents referred to in it that appear

write a written transcript of the oral presentation that you would make in response to Elisa Corvalan's instructions.

Assume that you will make the oral presentation on the date that you submit your answer to this Portfolio Task.

NOTE TO CANDIDATES ON THE WORD COUNT FOR THIS TASK

Donot include in your word count the following:

(a) any of the material that you copy directly from Documents A to E inclusive; and

(b) any material that you copy directly from the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 or any other legal authorities.

Document A

Hanna M Zeller, managing director ofExercise & Eat Limited("E&E"), will say:

E&E owns and manages a sports arena and vegan restaurant at The Park, Weyford, Guildshire GU2 1ZP. The sports arena consists ofa spa, two swimming pools, a gym, four group exercise studios, as well as three indoor and five outdoor astro-turf pitches for hockey, football, etc. I use the spa myself at least twice a week and my teenage son plays football on an indoor pitch for a local club side most Saturdays.

In September 2022, E&E decided that it needed to replace our outdated booking and management system for the restaurant with up-to-date and efficient hardware and software. To that end, I attended The Big Data Expo at Olympia in London on 16 September 2022. It was the largest and best attended conference I have been to in thirty years of management with over one hundred trade stands.

After viewing several products being demonstrated at the Expo, I decided E&E might acquire a system developed by Data Software Knowledge Limited("DSK")which operates as a specialist IT company from its main office at 69 The Fields, Crocus Road, Weyford, Guildshire GU75 8RR. I had a long conversation with DSK's managing director, Paulina Dudek. I described to her the set up with our sports arena and vegan restaurant. I explained that E&E needed hardware and software for the restaurant that would carry out the following basic tasks: reserve a table (or more than one table); record the name and contact information of the customer making the booking; transfer bar tabs to the correct tables; and calculate what tables are available and when and for how long.

I also stressed to Paulina Dudek that at the time we were operating a paper-based customer loyalty reward card scheme and, rather than move to a plastic reward card, which we did not see as having any marketing value for us, we wanted something hi-tech. I made it clear that any new system would need to tie loyalty rewards to the customer's own electronic account and be fully integrated with our point-of-sales applications.

Paulina Dudek told me that DSK's hardware and software system known as "Cuisine Time Premier" would meet all of E&E's requirements. I asked her the price to supply, install it and train our staff on its use. She said it would be in the region of 34,500. I told her that I would get back to her.

I recall that as I was leaving DSK's stand, Paulina Dudek handed to me her company's brochure. I had already collected numerous items at the Expo and read a few of them on the train on my way home. I cannot recall specifically reading DSK's brochure. Having looked, I accept that DSK's standard terms and conditions for doing business are at the back of its brochure. However, Paulina Dudek's act of handing to me the brochure on 16 September 2022 did not incorporate those terms into the contract that E&E entered into on 1 November 2022 with DSK and which I have detailed in the next paragraph.

After viewing several other possible systems for the restaurant, we decided to proceed with DSK. In the meantime, we had started to look for a new booking system for the sports arena. So, when I telephoned Paulina Dudek on 1 November 2022 to order the Cuisine Time Premier System, I also asked her if DSK could supply a suitable system for our sports arena. Nothing was ever put in writing but all our company calls are recorded and I refer to the transcript of the call which is Document B below.

After ordering the systems, over the next few weeks there were large numbers of staff from DSK on our site installing them. Some hardware was supplied, such as a new server and some computer terminals but otherwise the software was loaded onto our existing restaurant and sports facilities systems. By 3 December 2022 both systems were ready to go live as DSK had completed our staff's training. I arranged a bank transfer of 70,000 to DSK.

Unfortunately, neither system functioned properly after installation. I had emails from Janis Beks, our restaurant manager and Olga Sevcova, our sports arena manager, in respect of issues that were never resolved by DSK. Printed copies of these emails are Document C below.From these emails it is clear that there was a wholesale failure by DSK to respond to the problems or treat them seriously. It was therefore a reasonable step taken to mitigate our losses to employ additional staff to overcome the problems created by DSK's systems.

I met Janis on 16 December 2022 to discuss his email of the previous day. He said that he had attended DSK's training with his staff on allocating loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account. He was following both the training and DSK's instructions manual but the system would not allocate loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account. In his opinion the problem was a fault in the software.He insisted that the cost of reverting to the paper-based customer loyalty reward card scheme should not come out of the budget for the restaurant.

I also met with Olga Sevcova on 11 December 2022 after I'd read her email. I asked her what was causing the problems with the current time reports. She said she did not know. She had been told by the head of staff responsible for overseeing the bookings of the spa that he had that morning put two bookings for the next day in the system but three hours later the system had not updated tomorrow's spa bookings. She also said that she had spent the last two days observing the members of staff responsible for the pitches input bookings, cancellations and other information into the system. From those observations she was confident they had followed DSK's training and instructions manual. However, when she looked at the system's subsequent booking summaries, they had not been updated for the pitches in question.

I have known both Janis and Olga for over ten years. They are hardworking, honest and trustworthy. Both trust their staff and are respected by them. Olga iscurrently on long-term sick leave from work.

I cannot fail to note that the documents I have seen from DSK's disclosure indicate an alarming lack of qualifications and experience of its trainers. None have any teaching qualifications. None are accredited by the British Computer Society, The Chartered Institute for IT.

We struggled through a very busy Christmas 2022 and New Year 2023 but from enquiries made by my staff under my direct supervision it was clear that problems with both systems were escalating.As a result, the Board commissioned a report from an expert, Christina Kiamou (Document D below).Acting on it, and following a Board resolution to do so, I wrote to Paulina Dudek at DSK on 29 January 2023 rejecting both systems and indicating that a claim for compensation would be made for our many losses. Subsequently, I received the emails from Janis Beks, Olga Sevcova and Florian Kainz, our accountant, detailing various financial issues arising from the contract with DSK. Printed copies of these are Document E below.

H M Zeller

Hanna M Zeller

[Date]

Document B

Transcript

1 November 2022

Me: Hello, is that Paulina?

Her: Yes, is that Hanna from The Big Data Expo at Olympia in September?

Me: I'm impressed you remember. Look, I'm calling about placing an order for your Cuisine Time Premier Systembut first I was wondering if your company is experienced in booking systems for sports arenas.

Her: Yes, we are. How's yours set up?

Me: We have a spa and two swimming pools, a gym, four group exercise studios, as well as three indoor and five outdoor astro-turf pitches for hockey, football and the like.

Her: So, you'd want something like a hotel booking system for rooms but your customers would be booking the spa, a pool, the gym, a studio or a pitch?

Me: Yes.

Her: Then our "First Reserve System" is what you want.

Me: So, it can be programmed to accurately record what's happening at any point in time for each individual facility?

Her: Yes, it does exactly that.

Me: We want to create electronic accounts for customers from the details they supply when booking. Can your system do that?

Her: No problem.Our "First Reserve System" is precisely what you need.

Me: So, could you do us a deal for both theCuisine Time Premier System and the First Reserve System including training our staff on their use?

Her: I think I quoted you 34,500 for the restaurant when we met. The "First Reserve System" normally starts at 30,000 but obviously increases according to the sophistication levels needed. Yours are pretty high but how about 70,000?

Me: That includes hardware and software installation of both systems and staff training?

Her: Yes, the whole lot.

Me: What about a timescale? Can the systems be up and running in time for Christmas?

Her: What if we said the end of the first week in December at the latest?

Me: Sounds like we have a deal. Payment on completion?

Her: OK, that's all agreed. I'll get my head of installations to come over next week to start things off.

Me: Great. Speak to you soon.

Document C

E- MAILS in respect of issues that were never resolved by DSK

Janis Beks's email of 6 December 2022 read as follows:

Sorry to report an initial problem with the system here. We've discovered that none of the bar tabs have been transferred to the customer's table number. Quite a few customers obviously thought we were providing free drinks! We've had to insist on all payments being made at the bar but customers are not happy with this. The total amount that we have lost through unaccounted for bar tabs is 1,298.

Olga Sevcova's email of 8 December 2022 read as follows:

Hanna, there's a problem with the new system. None of the customer's details recorded at the time of booking are being transferred to the customer's new electronic account. We are having to enter all the details manually ourselves later. This is very time consuming.

Olga Sevcova's email of 11 December 2022 read as follows:

We are now experiencing serious problems with current time reports for all facilities. These are consistently showing some facilities booked when they are not. For example, the system as I now look at it shows all facilities booked for the next 3 hours but I've checked and there's 1 indoor and 2 outdoor astro-turf pitches not in use and 1 pitch has not in fact been reserved by any customers for the entire day.

Janis Beks's email of 15 December 2022 read as follows:

Please note that on settling their bill, the system fails to allocate loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account. As a result, the previous paper-based customer loyalty reward card scheme has been re-introduced.

Olga Sevcova's email of 15 December 2022 read as follows:

The issues with the current time reports for all our facilities continue despite Data Software Knowledge's technicians saying it will soon be sorted. I've had no choice but to employ an additional facilities manager to check all the bookings for the foreseeable future.

Janis Beks's email of 17 December 2022 read as follows:

The bar tabs are now the least of our worries. The system is not keeping proper track of table availability and the reports we get are inaccurate and misleading. Data Software Knowledge don't seem concerned that often we've been under booked and occasionally overbooked. Like Olga, I've now had no choice but to employan additional reservations manager to supervise the reservations, at least during the crucial Christmas and the New Year periods.

Document D

Report of Christina Kiamou, BSc, MSc

Forensic IT Investigator

Chartered Information Technology Professional, Fellow of the British Computer Society, Member of the Expert Witness Institute and Member of the Institution of Engineering & Technology

25A Dene Drive, Weyford, Guildshire GU44 1QW Tele 0898123456 c..t@net.com

Exercise & Eat Limited

The Park,

Weyford,

Guildshire GU2 1ZP

14 January 2023

Dear Hanna Zeller,

Thank you for your company's instructions to investigate the problems that you have had with the Cuisine Time Premier system and First Reserve System installed last December by Data Software Knowledge Limited.

The functions of both systems centre on the input, secure storage and output of many types of information, in large volumes but with little computation. By far the most important type of computation occurs in the financial accounting programmes where straightforward calculations of money, stock, etc take place. Neither system possess a highly complex computational function in the sense that very difficult and demanding complex mathematical equations have to be processed at high speed. However, high speed accurate transfers are obviously required of the restaurant bar tabs and table availability, and likewise for the current time reports for the sports arena facilities.

The software in both systems is data-driven. The software should have been written to work with your restaurant and sports arena requirements with the relevant data stored in the database of each system. The modern practice of software engineering is to use data-driven software as far as possible.

Following my detailed examination and testing of both systems, I have reached the following conclusions:

(a) each contains high levels of bugs, errors and defects which created the discrepancies, etc that you encountered;

(b) each has suffered failures of internal mechanisms which were intended to ensure the reliability of your data;

(c) the systems have not enabled such discrepancies to be detected, accurately identified and/or recorded either reliably, consistently or at all; and

(d) there are weaknesses and risks of errors and other sources of unreliability within both systems.

As I have indicated, bugs, errors and defects in the systems have caused the discrepancies, shortfalls, etc that you have suffered. I would summarise these as follows.

RESTAURANT

Bar tab bug - none of the bar tabs were transferred to the customer's table number;
Table availability bug - the system does not keep proper track of table availability and the reports are inaccurate and misleading; and
Loyalty rewards bug - on settling a bill, the system fails to allocate loyalty reward points to the customer's electronic account.

SPORTS ARENA

Current time reports bug - current time reports for facilities consistently show some facilities booked when they were not; and
Electronic account bug - none of the customer's details recorded at the time of booking are transferred to the customer's new electronic account.

In my opinion there is the possibility of bugs, errors and defects existing in both systems that I have not yet discovered.

In conclusion, neither system meets your requirements and I recommend both are rejected and replaced.

Please let me know if I can assist any further.

C Kiamou

Christina Kiamou

Document E

E- MAILS detailing various financial issues arising from the contract with DSK

Janis Beks's email of 14 May 2023 read as follows:

The replacement IT booking system has now been installed at a total cost of 39,451. After speaking to Florian Kainz, I estimate that we lost 3,300 in staff time wasted trying to deal with all the problems with the last system, particularly having to go back to using the paper-basedcustomer loyalty reward card scheme.

Olga Sevcova's email of 3 June 2023 read as follows:

I'm pleased to say that the new IT system we've had installed, albeit at a cost of 51,265,is working well. It is so very much better than Data Software Knowledge's system. The total salary we ended up paying to the additional facilities manager we had to employ whilst sorting out the last IT system was 9,190.

Florian Kainz's email of 19 June 2023 read as follows:

I've now completed the calculations for what we lost due to the Data Software Knowledge Limited fiasco. The loss of profits we suffered based on the number of facilities undersold and loss of custom to the sports arena was 41,295. It was worse with the restaurant, where ultimately the profits lost based on the number of tables undersold and loss of custom was 54,200.

Olga Sevcova's email of 26 June 2023 read as follows:

I've now had a chance to meet with Florian Kainz to look at the time our staff wasted trying to sort out all the issues that came up with Data Software Knowledge Limited. The most significant item was manually creating customer electronic accounts. All in all, we put the figure at 3,925.

Janis Beks's email of 26 June 2023 read as follows:

Apologies for the delay. I can confirm that the salary paid to the additional reservations manager over Christmas 2022 and the New Year 2023 totalled 5,470.