The Toynbee Convector: Stories

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Knopf, 1988 - Fiction - 275 pages

In his latest work, Freedman seeks to establish a contemporary tort of discovery abuse. As he notes at the outset, the discovery process has become a central feature of modern litigation. He deals with the ways in which this interrogatory process can be abused, leading to excessive, costly delays in pretrial hearings and in subsequent litigation, if not settlement of the case. Discovery abuse places onerous demands on litigants who can be forced to produce documentation in such quantities, for example, that the costs involved discourage further litigation. At the outset, Freedman fully examines the nature of the discovery process itself, including international discovery procedures, and then explores abuses of the process and their ramifications for future litigation.

Organized in two main parts, the book begins with an introductory overview of the discovery process in general. Subsequent chapters address issues such as American Bar Association standards for discovery and procedure before the criminal trial; federal, state, and civil discovery procedures; non-party access to discovery materials; discovery in arbitration; and discovery procedures abroad. The second section reveals the nature of the abuses of the discovery process, including the destruction or spoliation of evidence, abuses connected with the Freedom of Information Act, and discovery abuses in the insurance field. The book concludes with chapters devoted to sanctions and remedies for discovery abuse and the Freedman's recommendation for the intentional tort of discovery abuse. Both a practical handbook for corporate attorneys and an ideal supplemental text for courses in business law, this volume offers a clear and comprehensive treatment of a growing problem in litigation proceedings.

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Contents

The Toynbee Convector
3
Trapdoor
17
On the Orient North
31
Copyright

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About the author (1988)

Ray Bradbury was born in Waukegan, Illinois on August 22, 1920. At the age of fifteen, he started submitting short stories to national magazines. During his lifetime, he wrote more than 600 stories, poems, essays, plays, films, television plays, radio, music, and comic books. His books include The Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit 451, The Illustrated Man, Dandelion Wine, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and Bradbury Speaks. He won numerous awards for his works including a World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 1977, the 2000 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the 2004 National Medal of Arts, and the 2007 Pulitzer Prize Special Citation. He wrote the screen play for John Huston's classic film adaptation of Moby Dick, and was nominated for an Academy Award. He adapted 65 of his stories for television's The Ray Bradbury Theater, and won an Emmy for his teleplay of The Halloween Tree. The film The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit was written by Ray Bradbury and was based on his story The Magic White Suit. He was the idea consultant and wrote the basic scenario for the United States pavilion at the 1964 World's Fair, as well as being an imagineer for Walt Disney Enterprises, where he designed the Spaceship Earth exhibition at Walt Disney World's Epcot Center. He died after a long illness on June 5, 2012 at the age of 91.

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