Dr. Brent Dalton’s professional and private lives spiral downward when he tests positive for HIV following an accident in the operating room. In rapid sequence, Dalton is sued by a former patient who alleges he infected her with the virus, his hospital privileges are taken away, patient referrals disappear, and he is compelled to close his office and surgical practice. Finally, he begins to have marital problems. Convinced he is not responsible for his patient’s infection, Dalton hires an attorney and a private investigator to work on his behalf. Then, despondent, he leaves on a solo sailing trip and almost dies when he is swept overboard in a sudden squall. Following his near-death experience, Dalton finds a renewed enthusiasm for life and turns the tables against his oppressors after an enlightening discovery.

A collection of short stories set in the ER introduces a neurosurgeon who practices witchcraft, a trauma surgeon who commits suicide, a wounded murderer, and a man chased across the New Mexico desert by a missile.

V. 1-11. House of Lords (1677-1865) -- v. 12-20. Privy Council (including Indian Appeals) (1809-1865) -- v. 21-47. Chancery (including Collateral reports) (1557-1865) -- v. 48-55. Rolls Court (1829-1865) -- v. 56-71. Vice-Chancellors' Courts (1815-1865) -- v. 72-122. King's Bench (1378-1865) -- v. 123-144. Common Pleas (1486-1865) -- v. 145-160. Exchequer (1220-1865) -- v. 161-167. Ecclesiastical (1752-1857), Admiralty (1776-1840), and Probate and Divorce (1858-1865) -- v. 168-169. Crown Cases (1743-1865) -- v. 170-176. Nisi Prius (1688-1867).