Gray v. Schneider

Citations

• 119 F. 474
• 1902 U.S. App. LEXIS 5293

Syllabus

<p>1. Inspection of Documents before Trial—Right to Relief.-</p> <p>Rev. St. U. S. § 724 [U. S. Comp. St. 1901, p. 583], provides that in the trial of actions at law the federal courts may, on motion and notice, require the parties to produce books or writings in their possession or power, containing evidence pertinent to the issue, in eases and under circumstances where they might be compelled to produce the same by the ordinary rules of chancery. Held, that a party litigant had the right to compel production and inspection of books before trial at law, especially where a bill of discovery had shown that books existed which contained the entries sought to be proved.</p> <p>2. Sam:e—Nature of Order.</p> <p>An order for the inspection by a party litigant, before trial at law, of books which contain entries with which he has no concern, and which he ought not to see, will be conditioned to require the deposit of the books in the clerk’s office, and to provide for the attendance of a representative of the opposite party, the relevancy of contested entries to be determined in the first instance by the clerk, with summary application for review thereof to the judge at chambers.</p>