Whether the public will be allowed to sit in on the courtroom battle surrounding the law banning restaurants with a foreign flavour will not be decided until Wednesday morning.

At that time Attorney General Elliott Mottley will lock horns -- in private -- with Grape Bay Ltd.'s lawyer Mark Diel, whose clients want to open a Macdonald's fast food franchise in Bermuda.

"I understand the Attorney General plans to make an application to have the case heard in open Court,'' Mr. Diel yesterday.

"If that's the case, it will be the first thing the judge will have to rule on before we can proceed. If the judge decides in the Attorney General's favour, the proceeding will move to open court.'' Mr. Diel is representing Grape Bay Limited in their battle against The Prohibted Resturants Act.

Grape Bay, whose principles include MP Maxwell Burgess and former Premier Sir John Swan, planned to open a Macdonald's franchise at the Airport before their efforts were scuppered by the signing of the Act into law.

Grape Bay Ltd. announced that it would sue Government only days after Governor Thorold Masefield signed the Prohibited Restaurants Act in August.

Grape Bay Ltd.'s first move was an originating summons, a proceedure normally held in chambers, with only the judge and legal representatives present.

Last week Mr. Mottley said he would ask the judge to exercise his discretion and adjourn it to open court.

Mr. Diel said he had been instructed to seek a Supreme Court ruling on whether the act applies to Grape Bay Ltd and, if it does, whether the Act is in breach of the Bermuda Constitution.

According to the lawyer, the Constitution guarantees protection of people's property -- and that Grape Bay's contention was that its contracts with McDonald's in the US and others constitute property in the eyes of the law.

He added the Constitution also guaranteed freedom of association, with provisos; however, none of the reservations applied in this case, he said.

RESTAURANT EAT