What You Need to Know About Equine Law: Your Rights and Responsibilities

Basics of Equine Law

Equine law is a specialized field of legal practice that focuses on issues involving horses and the larger horse industry. It encompasses various legal matters including contracts, liability, employment, criminal law, labor law, and real estate. Horse related property disputes often involve tort claims, or Unlawful Detainer Actions which are a cause of action for the unlawful occupation of a home (i.e. barn) and have separate statutory requirements than a traditional lawsuit. Criminal issues include equine injuries and crimes of violence against horses, which include cases of neglect and abuse. Recent cruelly neglected and abandoned horses are frequent criminal cases in California courts. They are commonly addressed with a hearing to determine if the humane society can keep the horses , or whether the animals will be returned to the owner pending outcome of a CRIMINAL PROSECUTION.
The practice of equine law has evolved alongside the horse industry, which dates back to the dawn of civilization. Equine law has become an important aspect of this growing industry, providing support and guidance for horse owners, breeders, trainers, and service providers.
Equine law is important for the horse industry as it sets the legal framework for the industry to operate in California. Equine law also provides a way for equine service providers to address industry specific issues that can arise in providing services. Equine law fills a niche in the legal landscape, providing covered contracts, business comps, and torts that encompass nearly all areas of the law.

Equine Injury – Liability & Negligence

Equine law addresses the legal rights, responsibilities, and liabilities of equine activity participants, owners, breeders, insurers, and operators of facilities where such activities occur. A primary concern is the degree of liability horses and/or horse facilities may assume for injuries or deaths arising from events involving the animals they own or lease, and whether legal obligations exist to participants or other parties present upon their property. Both in the common law tradition and specific statutes, such as equine liability statutes, the law may shield equine activity participants and operators from certain liability. Equine liability laws may require persons engaging in equine activities to assume a certain share of risk or prevent them from collecting under certain types of insurance policies, while other laws allow for liability if the subject activity is found to be undertaken negligently.
Negligence is defined as the failure to exert reasonable care under the circumstances, based upon what a reasonably prudent person would do. All of the elements of negligence must be present before the claim may proceed. Other aspects of negligence include the standard of care to be utilized and any defenses to the claim, as set forth by relevant case law or statute.

Contracts and Liability Releases in Equine Law

When buying, leasing, or entering into any types of horse trades, the contract you enter into may vary in terms of detail and requirements. However, any contract with a horse is essentially a sales contract even if it is not called a "sales contract". As an example, a lease agreement is a license given to another person or entity to use the horse, therefore, the lease agreement must be drafted properly to protect the owner from liability. There are various contracts and agreements that you may encounter when engaging in horse trades:
• Bill of Sale – This is used in any transaction for the sale of a horse, pony, or donkey. It should include details about the horse such as sex, age, color, breed, marking, distinguishing features, microchip number as well as identifying the parties to the sale.
• Board agreement or boarding contract – This is drawn when a client moves his or her horse or pony into your training or boarding facility. These agreements must comply with the laws of the state where the facility is located.
• Breeding contract – There are two types of breeding contracts, a "live foal" guarantee or no guarantee. These contracts must be very specific in detail such as dates for each stage of the process, the stallion, fees, guaranteed pregnancies, etc. As a result, they can be lengthy and complicated.
• Lease agreement – If a horse owner wants to lease his or her horse to another person, then a lease agreement must be drafted that protects the owner from liability.
• Release – Although a release is not an agreement, it is a critical instrument that indemnifies a horse owner such that if anything goes wrong when another person uses or rides the horse, the horse owner shall not be responsible except as otherwise set forth in the agreement or applicable laws. In Arizona, equine activity liability law is aptly named the epically titled: The Arizona Revised Statutes, Title 12, Chapter 8 "AZ Equine Activity Liability Law". The release is signed by a person who is going to ride or use the horse.
• Service agreement – Many people who deal with horses have liability waivers for their service clients. These include trainers, instructors, farriers, veterinarians, etc. Even though you may have a liability release, you must have a contract for the services you will provide.
• Option or right of first refusal – An option is just that, an article that gives a buyer the "right of first refusal". This type of contract is usually seen when buying a stallion when the buyer wants sole breeding rights.
• Employment Agreement – If you regularly employee many people to help you with your horse endeavors, draft an employment agreement. You should also consider an employment contract with your trainers as well.
• Partnership Agreement – If you own a business that you run with your partner or multiple partners, then a partnership agreement should be drafted. While there are many other agreements and contracts that fall under equine law, the aforementioned are the most common.

The Relationship of Proprietorship and Equine Law

Horses are often viewed as an extension of family. But whether you are buying your first horse or have owned several horses, it’s important to know that horse ownership is a legal relationship. These animals are treated as personal property under the law, which means there are certain legal protections and privileges at stake. This section looks at some of the legal aspects of horse ownership.
Registration
The first step in purchasing a horse typically involves choosing a breed registry. In many cases these organizations serve as a sort of league for owners and breeders of the same breed of horse, providing valuable resources such as breed guides, performance, magazine subscriptions, annual conventions, competitions, and other benefits. Some breed registries issue papers recording the ancestry and registration status of a horse. These documents can help determine the value of a horse, influence buyers in the purchase process, and establish proof of ownership. To transfer ownership, the buyer and seller must complete a bill of sale or certificate of transfer that includes the new owner’s name, address, phone number, and other basic identifying information. Horse sales contracts are often required by the registry in order to complete the transfer process.
Buying and selling horses
When buying or selling a horse, many factors come into play, such as registration, price, health care, and education. Equine law helps ensure both buyers and sellers have legal recourse in the event either feels wronged in the transaction. Common issues to consider include: When you make the decision to sell a horse, it is important to be transparent with the potential buyer about the horse’s history, health, and any previous injuries. Nothing drives a buyer away faster than a bad reputation. It is not recommended to sell an unwanted or untrained horse through any of the many online sale sites; rather, distributors, slaughterhouses, or kill buyers may be better options. Properly identifying a horse’s breed and level of training is also vital for a sales contract.
Purchase agreements
After you decide on a horse you would like to purchase, you should then negotiate a sales agreement or purchase contract. The purchase agreement gives the buyer security the horse is exactly what the seller says it is. Purchase agreements should include: A bill of sale can serve as a purchase agreement or simply as a record of the sale that should be signed by both parties and notarized. Bills of sale typically include: Unless you are an active member or participant of a registry, you will need to transfer the ownership papers into your name. It is the responsibility of the seller to make this transfer as soon as possible. Be sure you understand all of the transfer requirements of the registry before you make the purchase. When you are ready to own a horse, you should get a proper bill of sale signed, and if applicable, make sure you include all paperwork in the transaction. In addition, you should contact the animal’s registry to have it properly re-registered in your name. Proper paperwork will further protect your legal rights.

Insurance Issues for Equine Activities

Equine activities can raise a number of insurance issues. The highest profile equine insurance tends to be mortality insurance, which protects the investor’s interest in the horse. Mortality insurance can provide coverage for theft of the horse, major medical costs, and loss of use of the horse. It is important to read the exclusions carefully, and in particular, take note of the scope of coverage in connection with loss of use. If the loss-of-use clause is not sufficiently broad, the owner may be left without coverage if the horse can only perform at a reduced level, rather than the level required by the insurance company.
The second most common type of insurance policy for equine activities is a medical insurance policy for the horse. If it is possible to obtain more complete insurance coverage under a mortality policy , that may be preferable for most owners. Medical insurance policies, such as catastrophic-care policies, are relatively expensive. They will generally pay for "reasonable and customary" costs relating to the treatment of a specific injury or illness. However, an experienced veterinarian will usually be able to give a fairly close estimate of what the "reasonable and customary" costs of care will be based on the type of injury or illness involved, and the coverage available.
Liability insurance is another area where purchasers of equine products need to be well-informed. Horse properties, breeders, and trainers should all carry liability insurance on their operations. If visiting the farm or boarding facility, the visitor should have his or her own medical insurance in case of an unexpected injury. Not all visitor accidents are covered by the property owner’s insurance.

Equine Law and Dispute Resolution

Methods of dispute resolution available in the context of equine law include litigation, mediation and arbitration. The appropriate method of dispute resolution will depend on the type of matter being dealt with. Mediation can be a cost effective way to resolve disputes in a non-adversarial manner. Often, the mere presence of a neutral third party can help parties to reach a solution. Mediation is usually ideal for less complicated issues that do not require extensive research, time and costs to resolve. Litigation is generally considered when no other form of dispute resolution is available to solve the problem. Pre-evaluation is always encouraged and often mandatory prior to commencing litigation in civil matters in Ontario. It is during this evaluation process, or in the early portion of the litigation process that parties finalize their positions and explore settlement options. A judge can order parties to attend mediation prior to starting litigation. Arbitration is also an option to resolve disputes. Arbitration is often more appropriate for issues with higher dollar amounts and where judicial enforcement may be required.

New Trends and Developments in Equine Law

A significant trend in America’s equine law landscape in the past decade has been the movement in many States toward recognizing the need for particular protections and legal guidance for the equine industry. In 2007, Ohio passed Mechanic’s Lien legislation that encourages owners to post a notice on their property before doing work on any horses or horse property. Creating a lien releases horses by allowing a boarding barn owner to keep a horse until a bill is paid. Ohio also allows stable owners who haven’t been able to collect board to pursue legal action to sell a horse at public auction regardless of whether the owner is present, although the horse can’t be sold for more than the amount owed to the barn. In this process, the barn owner has to tell the livestock marketing office to put a lien on the horse to protect its interest in receiving payment for "feed, medical and other expenses." The owner then needs to give good faith notice to other lienholders, buyers and lenders. The barn owner must then pay the selling agent a commission that’s usually 10 percent of the sale price, but at a minimum can be $20.
The trend also has been evidenced by the rapid increase of new statutes in various states related to the establishment and function of equine insurance and equine activity liability. Up until this point, in most states, the equine industry was largely self-policing, with only a few statutes affecting all equine-related businesses and events. The trend now seems to be in favor of the state stepping up and offering better protection to owners, riders, and spectators. In a number of states, equine insurance, barn liability, negligence, and business liability has been booming, as the demand for such protections has increased over the past year and into 2013.
A focus towards safety has also encouraged veterinarians to protect their practices from liability by obtaining statute-directed professional liability insurance . Again, this safety was purportedly at the heart of this legal trend, thus limiting the extent to which the veterinarian may be held liable after injury or death of a patient, but the consequences have been two-fold, creating protections not just for the MD’s but also for those who rely on the veterinarian for standard care.
There has been greater concern placed on stabling operations with more boards available to allow for a higher than ever before horse occupancy. Now, the law has aimed to force such stable owners to provide their clientele with better care. This by denying owners the ability to enter into disclaimers that wholly relieve the stable owner of any liability, and requiring stable owners to carry minimum amounts of insurance. Negligence actions are still the beast of many equine-related lawsuits, and these trends hope to control liability and even prevent negligence in the first place.
Recent cases compiled by John Townsend of Common Sense Horse Ownership continue the trend towards accidents resulting in suit and liability for negligent boarding facilities. Negligence actions are when someone is found at fault for causing an injury when they should have acted differently under the same or similar situation. Since most stabling occurs at the private residence, the risk of liability is extremely high when the boarding stable is too hurried to put an item away properly and a curious horse knocks it off the shelf and it crashes onto a horse below. Likewise, when there is insufficient space or privacy and people congregate around the stabling, including children, a horse can instinctively react out of fear and cause harm to those near by.
More states will continue to compete on both ability to attract equine enthusiasts and protect their interests. We should expect to see continued trends in the area of insurance and liability protection for equine related businesses and states competing to attract equine enthusiasts.