This should be an epic trial, but it appears that people are expecting
that it will end with the general public knowing whether the Rossi
technology works or not.
That's not going to happen. This is really not about science or a
breakthrough in energy.
This is a trial about a contract, having less to do with science than
with small print. If you look at the extremes, there are two
possibilities which could happen which illustrate the big-picture
problem - and either would be a gross miscarriage of justice.
1) On one extreme, Rossi could win a large verdict even though the
technology does not work, since arguably (under the wording) it is not
genuinely required to work
or
2) On the other extreme, Darden could win even though the jury believes
that the technology works but they do not like Rossi and his fraudulent
"customer" ruse.
In the first scenario, the contract is drafted around the conclusions of
an "ERV". It is not drafted around whether an independent PhD agrees, or
even whether the so-called "expert" is honest or qualified. As the
appointed expert responsible for validation, his say-so may not be
truthful or valid to scientists, but it could fulfill the wording of the
contract...
...and then to complicate matters, he may not show up.
But the parties agreed upon this fiction in the contract - the ERV - and
he apparently performed his agreed-upon duties, and issued his report
which even if inaccurate or even fake, could meet the terms of the
contract, and that could be enough.
The second extreme could be as simple as a signature not being there or
taxes not being paid or some other triviality (aka "small print") which
is not related to whether or not the device worked in actuality but
which was part of the "legalese".
These are two extremes which cannot be ruled out. Both are unlikely but
stranger things have happened.
The biggest fear is that the device may have worked from time to time
but not enough to be a commercial success, but this mixed performance
was hidden away from view - in order to get a big payout. We will likely
never know if it ever worked, but if it had worked for a few days
instead of a year at anything close to a megawatt, it would be worth
millions. If Rossi looses however, LENR may go down the tubes with him,
even though it may have worked on occasion.
