In The News Again: Personal Injury info!!

We can’t even look at the news anymore without learning something else about personal injury law. The field is always growing, because new cases are always coming about. These cases aren’t just lawsuits; relevant incidents can be accidents, negotiations, and even the release of relevant studies. In this blog I’d like to talk about two very different issues. The first has to do with the education of drivers, and the impact it has. The second has to do with a shocking case of an E-Cigarette gone terribly wrong.

So, we’ll begin with the study relating to driver education. There are some states in the nation that require teenage would-be drivers to complete a driver education course before they can receive their license. In other states, no such requirement is in place. And, as we all know, some teenagers think they know better than everyone else. So, as I’m sure you could imagine, in the states where the driver education course is not required, many teenagers choose to not take the course. This means that in the states without the requirement, millions and millions of teenagers get behind the wheel without any formal courses instructing them on how to properly operate a vehicle.

The publication that released the study, Pediatrics, noted that the teenagers that did not have the formal training were more likely to be involved in car accidents than were those who had taken the course were. This seems like a no-brainer. Of course the students with the driver education course would be more educated drivers, and thus, safer on the road. This becomes an issue not of personal liberty, but rather of roadway safety. Doctors aren’t allowed to practice without formal training. Lawyers aren’t allowed to practice without formal training. Heck, plumbers have to go to school for plumbing. So, why should people be allowed to get behind the wheel of a car, and endanger many other people, without any formal training?

Our next issue is more explosive, so to speak. This week a Florida man is in the process of recovering from grave injuries he received after his electronic cigarette exploded inside of his mouth. Officials associated the case have pinpointed the culprit as a faulty battery inside the device. The man’s wife heard the explosion of the e-cigarette and reported that it sounded like a firecracker was going off. Unfortunately, the awful sound wasn’t the most damaging part of this incident.

The explosion caused real physical damage to the man; it knocked out all of his teeth and destroyed part of his tongue. And then, to add insult to injury, the e-cigarette caused a fire to start. As of now, the particular brand of e-cigarette has not been determined. This will be an issue of product liability. The battery manufacturer, as well as the e-cigarette company may both be held responsible for this horrible incident. The man switched to e-cigarettes as a safer alternative to regular harmful tobacco products. As a result of his choice, he lost all of his teeth and part of his tongue. Currently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not control these “safer” e-cigarettes, though as of June 2009, other tobacco products are regulated by the FDA.

For questions about this or any other issue, please contact the Law Offices of Aronberg & Aronberg at 561-266-9191 or email us at daronberg@build.simple.biz.

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