Exam A
Test your knowledge of equine law. by Attorney Krysia Nelson
Do Equine Activity Liability Acts Mean “Zero-Liability” For Horse-Related Injuries?
woman was attending a Warmblood sport horse auction with her husband. He was thinking of bidding on a horse, but the wife
was really just along for the ride (no pun intend- ed). The auction was being held at a local horse center where the main stadium building housed an indoor arena, adjacent schooling area, grand- stands, restrooms, etc. The couple was seated in the grandstands. The wife needed to visit the restroom, which was located under the grand- stands. To get to the restroom, she had to exit the grandstand, walk past the entrance to the arena, and through the schooling area. After making it to the restroom, the wife entered the schooling area on her way back to join her husband in the grand- stands. A horse that was being led in the school- ing area spooked and kicked her in the head. The woman was very seriously injured, and both she
and her husband filed suit against the company which conducted the auction. The auction company argued that it was en-
titled to immunity pursuant to the equine activ- ity liability act in effect in the state where the ac- cident had occurred. The couple argued that an exception to the immunity provided by that law was applicable and the auction company was not entitled to immunity because the wife was “simply a spectator or a non-participant” in the sale, and that she was “injured in an area where spectators were ‘designated or intended’ to be present.” The auction company argued that the wife was a “participant” in the sale because, by law, a “participant” is defined to include a person “inspecting or assisting in inspecting” a domesti- cated animal for purchase. Zero liability? True or False?
☛ Turn page for the outcome.
70 January/February 2015
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