The European and the British people are warned about aging tires. They are warned that old tires can be dangerous. The European and the British people are educated that a brand new tire, fresh from the store shelves, might not be brand new. The European and the British people are educated to check tire age and to be cognizant of the dangers associated with it.

The American public is not warned about aging tires; that old tires can be dangerous; or that “brand new” tires on the store shelves may be 2, 3, or 6 years old when they are sold and put on our car.

A recent article posted by a colleague at Injury Board, Mike Bryant, provides some very useful links to an older 20/20 report that I have to confess I had completely forgotten about.

In Florida, apparently the heat fosters more than just mosquitoes, humidity and hurricanes. Down here in Florida, the heat also causes tires to wear at a higher rate; something that tire manufacturers have known for some time.

If the higher ambient temperatures subject tires to a higher failure rate, the age of the tire also figures importantly into the failures. Again, something tire manufacturers have known and have apparently been waiting patiently for years to be regulated about, well, by someone.

When you buy a “brand new” tire from a retailer you expect, well, a “brand new” tire. You may not get what you expect. Apparently tires can sit on shelves for 2, 3, 6 or more years before being sold. All that time, the tires are being exposed to the air, drying the rubber out and aging while they sit there on the shelf. They still look brand new; they still have great tread depth; and they still smell new; but they have been degrading the whole time.

So, how can you tell the age of your tires? Not easy with many tire manufacturers. The special coding used on many tires can only be found by crawling under the car and looking at the inside of the tire. The codes will give you tire size, location of manufacture, and the date of manufacture. The date is the important part.

Everyone should pay close attention to tire health and age, but clearly, based on studies by the National Highway Safety Administration, people in states where the ambient temperatures remain warm to hot all year should pay special attention:

• When you purchase tires ask the retailer to show you the date of manufacture.
• Do not purchase tires, which are already 3 to 6 years old.
• Check tire pressure often.
• Maintain manufacturer recommended levels of tire pressure.
• Return to the tire dealer anytime you have repeated loss of pressure in tires.
• Avoid petroleum based tire “cleaners”.
• Inspect your tires, both the exterior and interior, for wear or damage.
• If you hit something while motoring down the road, inspect your tires at your next opportunity to verify any damage.

The short answer in Florida is…No.

In Fields  v Kirton, 961 So. 2d 1127 (2007) the 4^th District Court of Appeals certified a question to the Florida Supreme Court of great public importance:

Whether a parent may bind a minor’s estate by the pre-injury execution of a release.

The Florida Supreme Court acknowledged the history of decisions, both in Florida and outside Florida that have upheld the pre-injury release of a minor’s rights against a negligent party in the event of injury.

The Court considered the two compelling interests suggested by the case. Parents have an interest in raising their own children and the state has a compelling interest in protecting children. In this decision, the Court reasoned a careful balance between the interests of parents and the state.

The Court discusses the defendant’s arguments related to FS 744.301(2), allowing a parent to settle claims on behalf of their minor children. The Court, however, points out that this statute applies to situations in which a minor has a cause of action against another party; not a situation in which the parent is, pre-injury, absolving a party of any negligence. Further, FS 744.301 typically comes into play in situations where the courts ultimately must approve any settlement in excess of $15,000.

The Court reasoned that although parents have a fundamental right to make parenting decisions “concerning the care, custody, upbringing, and control of their children, the question of whether a parent should be allowed to waive a minor child’s future tort claims implicates wider public policy concerns.”

The ultimate foundation for the Court’s decision can be found in the following:

“Therefore, when a parent decides to execute a pre-injury release on behalf of a minor child, the parent is not protecting the welfare of the child, but is instead protecting the interests of the activity provider. Moreover, a “parent’s decision in signing a pre-injury release impacts the minor’s estate and the property rights personal to the minor.” Fields, 961 So. 2d at 1129-30. For this reason, the state must assert its role under parens patriae to protect the interests of the minor children.”

In cases involving pre-injury releases executed by a parent on behalf of minors in commercial matters, the release is unenforceable and the tort action arising from the injuries and negligence is duly actionable.

In the midst of all o f the end-of-the-year and holiday hustle and bustle, December is also a time for reflection.  It is a time to look back on the good times, things that you have done of which you are proud, the moments that warmed your heart, and those times when you had to stop and “put it all into perspective.”  I am blessed to have had several of these moments this year with my new friends at Seagull Industries.

I am relatively new in town and am just starting to learn through my law firm and its employees about all of the wonderful charitable organizations in the Palm Beach area.  Earlier this year, our firm participated in a national program through Injury Board where trial lawyers from around the country donated Wii gaming systems to children’s homes, rehab facilities, and other charities.  Seagull Industries was recommended as an appropriate charity for this program by Bob Pitcher, one of our Paralegals who serves on the Board of Directors.   I was privileged to meet with several clients of the facility at that time and wanted to find additional ways to help these developmentally-challenged adults.

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Wyeth’s marketing “revolution” called Premarin has been proved responsible for the deaths and injury to women across the country.

In documents released in court litigation, Wyeth demonstrates absolute giddiness over their “revolution” to sell, sell, sell Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) to all women everywhere.

What Wyeth and other HRT manufacturers have done in an overly aggressive pursuit of profits over safety can only be termed as reprehensible.

What I was not aware of were the victims who lacked a voice.

The victims who were forced to participate; who did not have the ability to choose; who still have no voice.

Premarin, a Wyeth product, is named such as a result of one ingredient: PREgnant MARe urINe.

A commercial performed by Mary Tyler Moore is, well, startling is insufficient; shocking, upsetting, outrageous, sad; a pathetic commentary on where humanity finds itself.

It is one of those videos you view and wonder where our humanity has fled. Watching the video illustrated to me that no boundaries apparently existed in HRT manufacturers’ “revolution” for profits.

It is a visual most of us do not want to see, but a visual that needs to be seen.

I warn you. The video is both disturbing and graphic.

The story is all too common. An innocent victim’s life is taken and their family is forever changed by the irresponsible actions of a drunk driver. Ironically, drinking and driving crashes are one of the most easily preventable catastrophes. Drinking and driving is a choice each driver makes and with that choice comes the responsibility of possibly taking another’s life.

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) estimates that each year nationally, more than 1,000 people die during the period between Thanksgiving to New Years, in drunk driving crashes. Because of increased consumption of alcohol and an increase in the number of special events and parties, drinking and driving is more prevalent.

Despite reports from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stating that alcohol-related traffic deaths fell by 7 percent in 2008, too many people continue to get behind the wheel after they have had a few drinks. Is it really worth it? Do you really need to drive your car home so badly that you will risk your life, your career, your family, and someone else’s life?

The easiest way to avoid getting into trouble in the first place is assigning a designated driver to provide safe rides by staying sober. By planning ahead, there is no question who is driving or how the group will be getting home. If you know you and your group will be drinking, then plan ahead and hire a taxi to take you to and from your destination. A little bit of planning can make a big difference in your life and the lives of other’s in this holiday season.

Some simple tips to stay safe this holiday season:

• If you drink, don’t drive, no matter how little you think you have had to drink.
• Designate a driver before you arrive at an event or party.
• If hosting a party, make sure to set up rules on drinking and driving. Offer to provide a ride home or a place for guests who drink to sleep.
• If possible, avoid driving during the early and late evening hours on holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. Protect yourself and passengers by wearing a safety belt at all times.

Have a happy, safe holiday season.

“What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.” Henry Thoreau.

Things must be tough for Big Tobacco; 8000 plaintiffs, so much truth, so little defense. As I have previously written, I felt Florida would be a little too hot for those boardroom lawyers representing Big Tobacco and it appears I may have been correct.

You expect them to come after you in the courtroom or in deposition. You expect Big Tobacco’s lawyers to be aggressive, take no prisoner types of lawyers. You expect Big Tobacco to want to delay cases going to trial; after all, in some cases, they face dying plaintiffs. What, at least, I did not expect is that Big Tobacco would try and hijack the Florida litigation to California.

In a couple of cases here in Florida, Big Tobacco has actually changed their focus of attack from the plaintiffs to a lone professor from Stanford University. Yes, that is correct, Big Tobacco is bringing its entire, massive power down upon the head of a historian, Dr. Robert Proctor, who apparently had the temerity to testify for injured smokers and against Big Tobacco.

Big Tobacco’s lawyers have filed motions trying to force Dr. Proctor to disclose his notes, his unfinished notes and any other papers remotely connected to a book he has been researching – a book not yet even published.

Let’s think about this. Dr. Proctor is an historian. So, that would mean that Dr. Proctor testifies about things that have occurred in the past; discussions that have occurred in the past; publications published in the past; and Big Tobacco’s advertising, again, in the past.

Could it be that Big Tobacco has difficulty with Dr. Proctor’s testimony? Can they not read the history just as Dr. Proctor does and can they not hold his feet to the fire based on the history? Could it be that Big Tobacco does not like the title of Dr. Proctor’s proposed book: “Golden Holocaust – A History of global Tobacco”?

Yep, it can get hot down here.

It is clear that the decline of hormone therapy use has saved lives.

Recently released research from the University of Wisconsin puts the number of women who will be spared invasive breast cancer this year at 6,000. Based on the study done by the Women’s Health Initiative, the numbers of saved lives are probably closer to 20,000 per year.

Between 2001 and 2004 we saw a reduction in hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prescriptions from 61 million to 21 million. Based on the findings of the Women’s Health Initiative study, there was a 25% increase in breast cancers for women using Prempro and, although the manufacturer, Wyeth, used enormous efforts to obfuscate the findings, lives were saved through the truth finally coming out after 50 years.

What efforts did Wyeth use to hide the dangers of HRT and how did the truth ultimately come out?

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Nearly 51% of all FDA approved drugs have serious adverse effects not discovered by the FDA until after the drug is approved and on the market.

How does this happen?

The FDA is not meant to be a true filter for the efficacy of drugs. They have neither the staff nor the funding to be able to verify the research and data submitted by drug manufacturers. Like it or not, the FDA, in large measure, must rely on the honesty and competence of the evaluations carried out by the very companies who seek to make profits on ultimately marketing a prospective drug.

Direct to consumer advertising is a problem. Prescription drugs are one of the few products in which manufacturers spend billions of dollars to sell you something you can not buy. Well, you can not buy the product unless a physician agrees. Drug manufacturers, though, continue to create elaborate TV ads to lure Americans to this drug or that drug. When yo are finished watching some of these ads, you are convinced you have a disease you never imagined you had before; due to the power of suggestion.  A drug for everything and a disease for every drug.

Why eat healthy if you can take a pill that helps you lose weight or take a pill that lowers your cholesterol?

The over prescribing of antibiotics, for example, is causing antibiotic resistant strains of viruses, flus, and “bugs” that are becoming increasingly dangerous to the public.  Almost every medication on the market can cause life-threatening side-effects leaving us to ask “is the cure worse than the illness?”

What can the consumer do?

Ask questions.
Demand complete information and answers.
Ask about treatment complications.
Ask about non-drug focused treatments for diseases and conditions.
Do not fall prey to the glitzy ads.
Be guided by a trusted physician; while insisting on complete information.

In the Palm Beach County area, numerous events are scheduled to support the Toys for Tots effort. Below are some of those scheduled in the near future.

Drop off locations in the Palm Beach County area include the businesses kind enough to be able to provide their businesses for this worthy event. They can be located by clicking here.

I wish every child slept in a bed and had a chimney from which to hang stockings.

I wish every child dreamed of sugar-plums dancing.

I wish every child could imagine that chubby and plump figure driving out of sight into the wintry air.

I wish every child could hear about Dasher and Dancer, Prancer and Vixen.

I wish every child could run to a tree and see presents wrapped in festive paper and colorful bows.

I wish every child could wake up on Christmas morning with a toy to unwrap.

Sadly, children all across our prosperous country wake up in cars, in shelters or in houses bare of presents or even food.

Toys for Tots is an organization begun by a man who could find no organization that helped make Christmas a brighter day for children by making sure no child had Christmas without a toy to unwrap. In 1947, Major Bill Hendricks began the Toys for Tots effort and our country’s Marines took up the call in 1948.

This year, our firm is a co-sponsor of this worthy event in the Palm Beach area. We encourage everyone to think back; to remember the spirit of the season; and to help bring a smile to a child who may otherwise have no reason for joy.

Make a difference in your life by making a difference in the life of a child. Go to the Toys for Tots website or, if you live in the Palm Beaches, go to the Channel 5 website for more information.