6 Expert witness offered by the Commission and the representatives: Bartomeu Melia i Lliteres. expert witness offered by the representatives: Pablo Balmaceda. 22. On March 9, 2005 the Commission and the representatives filed their observations on the testimony of Teresa Vargas and asked the Court to take it into account. 23. On March 15, 2005 the Secretariat, under instructions by the President, asked the representatives and the State to forward several documents as evidence to facilitate adjudication of the case, pursuant to Article 45(1) of the Rules of Procedure. 24. On April 4, 2005 the Commission, the representatives and the State filed, respectively, their final written pleadings on the merits, reparations, and costs. In addition to their final written pleadings, the representatives attached annexes as documentary evidence. 25. On April 15, 2005 the representatives of the alleged victims submitted part of “the documents that had been requested [from them] as evidence to facilitate adjudication of the case,” in connection with the instant case. The representatives also submitted their clarifications regarding the evidence to facilitate adjudication of the case requested by the Secretariat, which they had not been able to send. 26. On April 22, 2005 the State requested an extension of the deadline to submit the evidence to facilitate adjudication of the case and it challenged the documentation submitted by the representatives as evidence to facilitate adjudication, as well as the documents on costs and expenses filed by the latter together with their final written pleadings (supra paras. 24 and 25). 27. On May 4, 17 and 20, 2005 the State forwarded part of the documents requested as evidence to facilitate adjudication of the case, pursuant to Article 45(1) of the Rules of Procedure of the Court (supra para. 23). V EVIDENCE 28. Before examining the evidence offered, the Court, in light of Articles 44 and 45 of the Rules of Procedure, will refer to certain aspects of its jurisprudence that pertain to this case. 29. The principle of the presence of both parties to an action, which respects the principle of the rights of the parties to defense, applies in probatory matters. Article 44 of the Rules of Procedure reflects this principle, as regards the appropriate time for evidence to be offered for there to be equality among the parties.2 2 See Case of Caesar. Judgment of March 11, 2005. Series C No. 123, para. 41; Case of the Serrano Cruz Sisters. Judgment of March 1, 2005. Series C No. 120, para. 31, and Case of Lori Berenson Mejía. Judgment of November 25, 2004. Series C No. 119, para. 62.