Memorial Day marked the unofficial start of summer with many Central Floridians planning to enjoy a variety of watercraft activities on the region’s more than 2,700 large lakes. However, watercraft enthusiasts beware.

Florida led the nation in boating fatalities last year, according to statistics from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. This is the 16th time in 20 years that Florida has topped the list, prompting the Commission to approve a plan for mandatory boater education requirements phased in over the next 11 years, according to the Associated Press.

Last year, 70 percent of all boating accidents involved operators with no formal safety education; for fatalities, that number was 85 percent, the AP reported, adding that state officials believe mandatory education could reduce the number of fatalities by as much as 25 percent.

Boating safety is no accident. Please read our firm newsletter that addresses the importance of practicing watercraft safety and provides information on local boating courses is available from the U.S. Coast Guard.

Abuse and neglect of Florida’s elderly have risen a dramatic 15 percent in the past year, according to a report in the Orlando Sentinel. So far this fiscal year, the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) has received about 4,050 reports from Orange, Osceola, Brevard and Seminole counties alone.

Our firm has seen a significant increase in elder abuse cases since the Florida legislature passed nursing home protections in response to the industry’s claims that frivolous lawsuits were rampant during the 1990s and early this decade. However, during this same period, we also saw a steady decrease in the number of cases involving elder abuse.

DCF has called for increased training of investigators and greater vigilance by neighbors and family. DCF Secretary Bob Butterworth attributes the increasing abuse to a struggling economy when tempers flare and predators seek out the elderly for financial gain.

From my perspective, the increasing reports of elder abuse and neglect have occurred because there is limited financial consequence for the nursing home industry due to the protections passed by the Florida legislature. Coincidence or not?

Despite governmental awareness programs and parental oversight and pleading, more than two-thirds of young drivers and passengers killed in nighttime car crashes aren’t wearing seat belts, according to research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. This is an alarming statistic for parents of teenagers.

In response, this year’s NHTSA “Click It or Ticket” seat belt enforcement campaign, which began on May 19, will focus on nighttime seat belt use when the odds of being killed in a car crash are three times greater.

Too often, our practice sees the catastrophic results when unbelted drivers and occupants are involved in car crashes. The lesson learned from the vast majority of these cases is that serious injury and death can be avoided by making seat belt use a habit for both drivers and passengers.

“Seat belt use among young drivers and occupants is not what it should be, especially at night when the risk of dying in a crash triples,” said NHTSA Administrator Nicole Nason. “Clearly, we need to do more to make people of all ages understand that – whether traveling by car, SUV or truck – a seat belt is the best way to stay alive, day or night.”

The 2008 hurricane season is just three weeks away, and forecasters are predicting a well above average season with 15 named storms, eight hurricanes, and four intense hurricanes. This week, the Orlando Sentinel reminded homeowners to check their insurance policies to make sure they have enough coverage for damages that might occur during a major storm. “The most important thing to look for in a policy is whether it will pay enough to rebuild or repair a home, replace belongings and cover living expenses.”

I commend the Orlando Sentinel for this article and particularly reporter Anika Myers Palm’s reference to flood insurance.

After the tough hurricane season Florida endured in 2004, the insurance industry successfully lobbied for legislation that provides more protection for itself than it does for homeowners. For instance, insurance companies now have less of a burden to provide coverage for damage resulting from a flood. As a result, the door is open for self-interested insurance companies to claim that damage was caused by flood as opposed to wind driven rain.

As such, I highly recommend that homeowners purchase flood insurance even if they don’t live in a flood zone.

An estimated 1.7 million patients acquire an infection while hospitalized and a startling 99,000 patients die from hospital-acquired infections each year, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This is not a new problem for the medical community, which has been slow to take action. What is most disturbing is that efforts to address this issue (as well as others related to medical errors) only became a priority after the federal government ruled that Medicare will no longer reimburse for care that results from hospital or physician errors. It took a threat to the bottom line before these providers did the right thing and took actions that should have happened long before now.

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Law Day, created by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1958. In proclaiming this national dedication, President Eisenhower noted that the “guaranteed fundamental rights of individuals under the law is the heart and sinew of our nation, and distinguishes our governmental system from the type of government that rules by might alone.” He also called on “the legal profession, the press, and the radio, television and motion picture industries to promote and to participate in the observance of this date.”

Locally, the Orange County Bar has planned a number of activities in honor of Law Day, including presenting its Liberty Bell Award to an outstanding citizen, providing live mock courtroom demonstrations to school children across Orange County, and arranging for students from the Migrant Farm Workers Ministry to job shadow members of the judiciary as well as attorneys in the Ninth Judicial Circuit.

All of the attorneys in our firm are extremely proud of the work we do every day to advance what President Eisenhower called the principles of the rule of law that enhance the cause of the just in the settlement of disputes.