Page 174 - Equine Chronicle August Select 2020

AVOIDING HORSE BOARDING
DISPUTES
OPTIONS FOR STABLES AND OWNERS
Disputes sometimes occur between boarding sta- bles and horse owners. Occasionally, they be- come lawsuits. From the standpoint of a lawyer who has served boarding and training stables as well as horse owners in these disputes for decades, here are two common disputes and ways that each party can protect themselves.
Dispute: Horse owners believe boarding stables gave their horses sub-standard care, causing injury or death to the horses.
I have handled numerous lawsuits involving these claims. In one case, a horse was kicked in the leg by a pasture mate and had to be euthanized. Another involved a breeding farm that stabled broodmares and arranged for on-site breeding to its stallion; one day, the stable’s attending veterinarian palpated the mare to check her condition before breeding, but the veterinarian acciden- tally perforated the mare, and she was later euthanized. The owner sued the veterinarian but also blamed the sta- ble for not monitoring the mare hours before she died.
To protect themselves, boarding stable managers and trainers have a few options:
1. Use well-worded liability releases (where allowed by law) pertaining to the horse. Stables that include re- leases in their boarding contracts (where allowed by law) would be wise to pay special attention to the language. If possible, have a lawyer draft or review it. Never as- sume that the same release language that is designed to protect the stable against claims of injured people will equally protect the stable against claims involving in- jured horses. Details matter, especially with liability waiver/release agreements and clauses. Years ago, I de- fended a stable that was sued by a boarder whose horse was attacked by another horse in the pasture. The stable had no way of knowing of a problem as the injuries were beneath the horse’s winter blanket and not visible. Be- cause of the release in the stable’s boarding contract, I
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by Julie I. Fershtman, Attorney at Law www.equinelaw.net
168 - August/September, 2020