1. Did I Make a Difference Today?
Every day trial lawyers deal with the tragedies of clients who have been injured or lost
loved ones. The emotions of such a practice can be overwhelming. As I approach the 30-year
mark in my practice, I, like so many other trial lawyers, wonder if what we have done has made a
difference. We as South Carolinians are not alone. The Louisville, Kentucky, Courier Journal
recently published a story entitled “Rash of Kentucky Suicides Concerns Colleagues.” The story
covered the rash of suicides among “Trial Lawyers” in Kentucky who have taken their own lives
in recent months. The main cause was believed to be a sense of failure, and that what they do
doesn’t matter. Of the 12 who committed suicide in Kentucky since 2010, all were men, most
were trial lawyers and their average age was 53! This hits awfully close to home. Last time I
checked, I was 53!
What can we do as trial lawyers who care deeply about our clients and their causes, to
both avoid that feeling of despair and look after our friends and colleagues? Perhaps the first step
is to reflect on who we have helped and what differences we have made in both our clients’,
friends’ and families’ lives. Too often, we get caught up in our own self-aggrandizement and fail
to realize that the reasons we do what we do, as passionately as we do, is because we cannot
stand by and witness injustice. We are compelled to try and change things; to make things
better; to make things just. Each client we represent is an opportunity to make the world better
or safer. As the SCAJ motto states…”Keeping South Carolina Families Safe.”
I have witnessed many SCAJ members make a great difference in keeping our families
safe by pointing out dangerous products and holding their manufacturers accountable. I have
seen you work diligently to change regulations to keep our environment safe. I have seen you

2. work to pass legislation to make our work places, schools and highways safer. Don’t lose sight of
the fact that what you did, for that one client on that one case, made a huge difference in their
life. You were the one person who believed in them, fought for them and won for them. To
them, you are Justice. You are Hope. You are the Difference. As Margaret Mead stated,
“Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world. For, indeed, that's all who ever
have.”
Several years ago, I met some of those caring people. In September 2003, Pam and Steve
Saylor, parents mourning the death of their 16-year-old son, Chandler, came to see me. Chandler
had been dropped off at a birthday party to go swimming. Several hours later he was dead, the
result of an ATV – four wheeler, accident. The parents were devastated, as you would expect,
but equally shocked that Chandler was given an ATV to ride with no instructions, no helmet, or
any other kind of safety equipment. Sadder still is that this was the second member of the Saylor
family to die on a four wheeler. Several years earlier, Chandler’s cousin died on one. Tragedy
upon tragedy upon tragedy. While I went about doing my “lawyer thing” over the next several
years, the Saylors went about “making a difference.” They wanted to make certain that no other
family would receive the phone call all parents fear. Their story is one of the greatest feats of
perseverance I have ever witnessed. Climbing K-2 or Kilimanjaro would seem like a simpler
feat by the time their 7-year battle at the State House was over. Surely, they thought, "Who
would be opposed to requiring education, training and safety equipment for minors who ride
ATVs?" As they found out, the answer was "several Governors, one particular political party
and several powerful lobbyist groups. I have seen professional associations, corporations and
political factions give in to lesser opposition. But not the Saylors. They stayed the course, kept
the message clear, and front and center. “Our children must be protected.”

3. H3726 “Chandler’s Law” was first introduced in the House in 2005. It was championed in the
House by Representative Harry Ott who never faltered in his belief that something had to be
done. Senator Brad Hutto was the champion in the Senate. The first year it made it through the
House, only to be held up in the Senate. In 2006, it made it through the Senate and was vetoed
by Governor Sanford. While the House voted to override the bill, the Senate did not. In 2007,
the bill passed the House and the Senate, but was again vetoed by Governor Sanford who said,
“Forcing children ages 6-15 to wear helmets and take a safety course is an erosion of parental
responsibility.” The Governor also admitted that his own sons don’t wear helmets when they
ride ATVs. No action was taken in 2008 and it was again introduced in 2009 where it passed the
House. In 2010, the Bill died in the Senate on the last day when the Senators failed to call for a
third reading. In 2011, the bill was introduced again, passing the House and Senate in April and
was sent to the Governor Haley's office for her signature.
On May 11, 2011, one day after the eighth anniversary of Chandler’s death, the Governor
invited the Saylor family, Senator Hutto and Representative Ott to her office for the signing. The
Saylors asked me to attend because of my years of involvement in both the legal proceeding and
the legislative battle. When I tried to enter the Governors office, I was advised that I could not
attend. There I was sitting in the lobby of the State House, watching over the diaper bag of
Chandler's little niece who he never knew. I sat waiting for the news that Chandler’s Law was
enacted. Such is the life of a trial lawyer. And that’s okay because knowing that Chandler’s Law
will keep our children safer is more important than a photo or public accolade. That’s hard for a
trial lawyer’s ego. But while I did not witness the signing of the bill into law, nor appear in the
photo below, I remembered Margaret Mead's words. “Never believe that a few caring people
can’t change the world. For indeed, that’s all who ever have.”

4. (((INSERT PHOTO HERE)))))
Let me share with you what Chandler’s Law does. Chandler’s Law is true safety
legislation and provides the framework for negligence claims against a parent or guardian, property
owner, ATV owner, or ATV operator if they knowingly permit the statute’s violation and injuries or
death results. Also, if a violation of the statute’s restrictions can be shown, it should be possible to
submit a negligence per se claim and seek punitive damages from a jury.
First, Chandler’s Law places certain requirements on parents and guardians of children
operating ATV’s. In cases where a passenger or child operator is injured on an ATV being operated
by a child with a parent or guardian’s knowledge, determine whether that parent or guardian
complied with Chandler’s Law’s requirements. Parents or guardians may not knowingly permit a
child less than 6 to operate an ATV.1 A parent or guardian may not knowingly allow a child under
age 16 and who does not possess a driver’s license to carry a passenger while operating an ATV.2
Even if otherwise permissible, a parent or guardian may not knowingly allow a child under 16 to
operate an ATV in violation of a manufacturer’s Age Restriction Warning Label.3
Second, Chandler’s Law places certain safety requirements on persons 15 years old and
younger. If an ATV operator is 15 years old or younger and causes injury or death to a passenger or
other individual, determine whether that young operator violated any of Chandler’s Law’s safety
requirements. Any ATV operator 15 and younger must possess a safety certificate from a course
approved by the All-Terrain Safety Institute.4 If 15 years old or younger, ATV operators and
1 S.C. Code Ann. § 50-26-30(A).
2 S.C. Code Ann. § 50-26-30(B).
3 S.C. Code Ann. § 50-26-30(E).
4 S.C. Code Ann. § 50-26-30(F).

5. passengers must wear safety helmets and eye protection.5 Although the statute places these safety
requirements on the operators of ATVs, if a parent or guardian knowingly allowed a 15 year old to
operate an ATV in violation of these requirements, consider alleging claims of direct negligence
against the parent or guardian as well.
Third, Chandler’s Law places certain additional restrictions on any users of ATVs on public
lands that may provide for private causes of action if a child or passenger is injured or killed.6 First,
it is unlawful to operate an ATV in violation of any local regulations and restrictions for ATV
operation.7 If an individual is injured or killed through the use of an ATV on public lands,
determine if any local ordinances or regulations were violated. Second, persons 16 years old and
younger must be accompanied by an adult when operating an ATV on private or public land. If a
child operator does so on public or private lands without being accompanied by an adult, consider
negligence claims against the child operator as well as any adult that allowed the child to so operate
the ATV. Finally, Chandler’s Law prohibits ATV operation while under the influence of alcohol or
other controlled substance or in any other reckless manner.8 Therefore, no matter if the ATV is
being operated on public or private lands, an operator’s reckless conduct or intoxication causes
injury or death, consider claims against the operator and parent or ATV owner that allowed or
permitted the conduct.
So not only will Chandler’s Law help keep our children safe from ATV injuries, in the
event there is an event causing injury, the law sets forth liability for the injuries. In spite of our
best efforts to create an all-encompassing protection for children, certain exceptions were
required to pass the bill. Those exceptions are for minors operating an ATV within their parents
5 S.C. Code Ann. § 50-26-30(G).
6 S.C. Code Ann. § 50-26-40(A).
7 S.C. Code Ann. S 50-26-40(B).
8 S.C. Code Ann. §§ 50-26-40(G)&(H).

6. visual supervision on private property and anyone engaged in farming, trapping, hunting,
wildlife management and ranching operations.
I am very proud of the work done by the parents and members of the Legislature in
passing this law. Truth be told, I am proud of my involvement in working to keep South
Carolina families safe. It should not be just a slogan of our Association but a call to arms to do
something. It is easy to become depressed about the political climate, the difficult insurance
companies and uncaring juries. Unlike farmers who see, behind their tractors, the fields they
plow, or the seamstress who sees the finished gown, we see very little in tangible, touchable
results. That hit home, sitting at the State House guarding the diaper bag; not seeing the
flashbulbs fire or fielding the reporters' questions. I realized that perhaps the diaper bag I guarded
symbolized the children in whose lives we have, and will, made a difference. I bet you have
made a difference. Think about it.