When people buy and sell horses, disputes - and sometimes lawsuits - can follow. These conflicts are often avoidable. As a lawyer who drafts contracts and has tried equine contract cases in two states, I write to discuss some problems that can occur in equine sale transactions and suggestions for avoiding them. PROBLEM: Buying and Selling Horses on a Handshake Oddly, people in the horse industry still deal on a handshake. The same person who expects a receipt from the restaur

Horse owners, stable managers, and trainers often have insured horses in their care. What people sometimes forget is that insured horses are the subject of a contract that requires special attention and action, such as notifying the insurer if the horse becomes injured or ill. Representing an insurance company, this author recently won an equine insurance lawsuit in an Illinois federal court where the court denied the horse owner any benefits under an equine insurance policy

Definitely not! Horse-related activities have risks, and small equine business operators can be prime targets for claims and litigation. as a result. For example: • When riding her own horse and using her own equipment in a lesson, a student might fall off and blame the instructor. • An instructor's school horse might spook during a lesson, causing the rider to fall. The rider might later claim that the instructor is liable because the assigned lesson horse was unsuitable or

This article originally appeared in The Equine Chronicle EC May/June, 2011 In the last issue of The Equine Chronicle, we shared “What Horse Owners Need to Know About Insurance.” In the article, we shared advice on the types of insurance horse owners should consider including mortality, major medical, loss of use, care custody and control, stallion accident, sickness and disease, and farm and commercial liability. In this issue, we’ve asked farm owners from various backgrounds

Beginning Horses With Youth . . . It is no secret that from early childhood that when properly introduced kids love horses. There is often a mystical bonding when the relationship is nourished and developed. When parents gradually assign their interested children the responsibility to feed, care, and handle a horse, the child will assume a role of dependability and reliability. As a result, work and moral ethics develop the child into a responsible dedicated and determined pa

Insuring a living, breathing 2000-pound equine and all of the elements that surround him can seem a little overwhelming. We asked Jackie Starnes, owner of Starnes Insurance Agency, Summerton, South Carolina, and Tim Folck of Folck Insurance (affiliated with Marnitz & Associates), Lexington, Kentucky, to help explain what horse owners need to know about insurance. How an Equine Agent is Different It’s tempting to go to your neighborhood insurance agent to insure your farm and