About Me

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I am a consultant and general counsel to International Ride Training LLC as well as a practicing attorney in Avon, Connecticut. A particular focus of mine is the legal needs of the amusement and tourism industry. My focus on the amusement industry derives from my pre-law career as an operations manager with Cedar Fair Entertainment Company and Universal Orlando. Having started my career as a ride operator at Cedar Point in 1992, I progressed through the seasonal ranks and ultimately became the Manager of Ride Operations and Park Services at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City. I also worked in Universal's operations department during the construction and development of Islands of Adventure. Today, I am an active member of the New England Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions and the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions. I have been invited to speak at amusement industry meetings and seminars and have worked on a variety of matters relating to this industry.

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This Blog/Web Site is made available for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice (or any legal advice). By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney client relationship between you and the Blog/Web Site publisher and / or author nor can such a relationship be created by use of his Blog / Web Site. By using thisBlog / Web Site you understand that any statement on the blog site are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of Wiggin and Dana LLP or International Ride Training LLC. By using this blog site you understand that the Blog/Web Site is not affiliated with or approved by Wiggin and Dana LLP or International Ride Training LLC. The Blog/Web Site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state or jurisdiction. This blog is not published for advertising or solicitation purposes. Regardless, the hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements.

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Why have I been so quiet lately?

Hi everyone!  As some of you have noticed, my blog posts came to an abrupt halt recently, as did most of my activity on The Legal Roller Coaster's Facebook page.  I thought I should take a moment to explain why (to those who don't already know), and to assure you that this is only a temporary setback.

On February 19, I was driving my 6 and 7 year old kids to school.  On the way there, an eighteen year old driver of an SUV, who was travelling in the opposite direction, lost control of her vehicle on the icy roads in West Hartford, Connecticut (my hometown) and spun into oncoming traffic.  More specifically, she spun out and ended up right in front of our car.  The accident was serious:  the other car flipped, my car was damaged badly enough that emergency responders had to cut the door off to get my son out. 

The extremely good news is that my kids escaped with relatively minor injuries - back pain, minor lacerations, some bruising.  Within a couple of weeks, they were basically back to normal.  Moreover, despite flipping, the driver of the other car (I believe) is OK as well.  Yours truly, on the other hand, wasn't quite as lucky.  I broke my C-2 vertebra in the accident and suffered some bruising on my chest, as well as some lacerations on my legs when they hit the dashboard in the collision.  The injury to my neck, while serious and extremely painful, could have been worse as C-2 fractures can (and sometimes do) cause total paralysis and / or death.  I have spent the last month recovering both in the hospital and at home, on very strong painkillers, getting used to my new rigid cervical collar that I will be wearing until May. 

So that's why I've been strangely silent these last few weeks.  I started back to work part time this week - mostly working from home when I can, but I have also been into the office for a few hours.  Work makes me extremely tired right now, but I'm getting more strength daily and I hope to resume my life relatively normally in the next couple of months.  There have been plenty of interesting topics to write about on this blog, but unfortunately, they will have to wait for the time being. 

For those of you that already knew all of this, I appreciate the support you've given me and my family very very much.  For those of you that are just learning about this, please bear with me and let me know if you have any ideas for future pieces or feel like guest-writing something on the blog.  This would be a great time if there is any interest.

Thanks.  And I'll talk to you again soon...

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