Exam 1
You Be the Judge
Marla and her husband Jack buy a horse. They have formed a limited liability company
(“LLC”) and they register the horse with USEF, USDF, and its breed registry naming the LLC as the horse’s owner. The horse undergoes surgery and dies, and Marla and her husband file a mal- practice lawsuit against the veterinarian. In the lawsuit, they allege that they (personally and indi- vidually) are the owners of the horse. They testify in court that they are the owners of the horse. The veterinarian’s lawyer finds the registrations listing the LLC as the owner of the horse and asks the court to dismiss Marla and Jack’s lawsuit on the grounds that the LLC owns the horse, not Marla and Jack, and thus they have no basis to sue. Who owns the horse?
A. Marla and Jack, because they say so B. Marla and Jack, because they paid for the horse C. Their LLC, because the registry papers say so D. Their LLC, because Marla and Jack transferred owner- ship to the LLC when they sent in the registry paperwork
now dead horse was worth before the veterinar- ian performed the surgery that killed the horse. They hire an expert appraiser who testifies the horse was worth between $250,000–$350,000. Marla testified at trial that when she was horse shopping, the average price for a horse like the one they bought (who died) was $100,000. Mar- la had insured the horse for $35,000. The veteri- narian retains the services of an expert appraiser who testifies that a horse undergoing surgery has only salvage value of $500, because any con- dition requiring surgery would render the horse unmarketable. Thus, the veterinarian’s position is that immediately before the horse died, it was basically worthless. If the evidence establishes that the veterinarian committed malpractice and owes Marla and Jack the “fair market value” of the horse, how much do you award them?
2 54 March/April 2017
Marla and Jack are suing the veterinarian for $350,000, which is what they claim their
A. $350,000, the high end of their expert’s range B. $250,000, the low end of their expert’s range C. $100,000, what Marla testified would be an average replacement value for the horse D. $35,000, the insurance value E. $500, the salvage value F. None of the above
tree overhead and lands on Frannie, killing her. Frannie’s husband sues the county claiming that it was negligent because it had already marked the tree for removal because it had deemed the branch to be in danger of “imminent failure.” The county claims it is immune under the state’s recreational use act. Frannie’s husband argues that although the trail itself was clearly being used by his wife for a “recreational purpose,” the tree from which the branch fell was not “on the trail” itself.
3
A. The county is immune because Frannie was engaged in a recreational activity when she was killed, and it doesn’t matter that the tree wasn’t on the trail itself. B. The location of the tree is relevant, and the county would be immune if the branch had fallen and was lying on the trail and Frannie’s horse tripped on it; but in this case the county is not immune. C. The county is liable because the real issue is that it knew the limb failure was imminent, and it didn’t act fast enough to prevent Frannie’s death.
4
Marge and Homer have driven to their favorite restaurant. As they are walking across the park-
ing lot from their car to the restaurant entrance, they are trampled by a loose horse. The horse is owned by a historical re-enactor who is participat- ing in a historical re-enactment on a nearby prop- erty. The participants in this event are all camping in the field where the event is being staged. The owner of the horse did a poor job of tying it up, and the horse simply broke loose from its tether and ran away. Marge and Homer sue the horse owner, the event organizers and the owners of the
Frannie is riding her horse on a wooded trail through a county park. A branch falls from a
Test your knowledge of equine law. by Attorney Krysia Nelson
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