Equine Law Blog
We'd love to be considered as your next attorney. But we also care deeply about the continued strength and viability of the equine industry and hope that you don’t need us. Legal disputes are expensive to resolve, but careful planning can either prevent them completely or narrow them considerably. We offer some general ideas to help you plan for a dispute-free year:
Hire a Lawyer Proactively
You can wait until disputes happen, but you can also plan to prevent them. A lawyer can draft contracts for you. A lawyer can also advise you of ways to organize your business, such as:
- Whether the workers and assistants you consider to be "independent contractors" are really "employees," which might require you to purchase workers compensation insurance and consider changing how you work with them.
- Whether your existing liability insurance was designed for your business activities.
- Whether you are commingling your business and personal bank accounts and, if so, whether this creates problems for your business.
Avoid Handshake Deals
By far, the most frequent reason people contact us is because of a verbal contract dispute. People frequently use "handshake deals" for sales, leases, and boarding arrangements. When disputes involve these and other unwritten agreements, the parties rarely agree about what the transactions involved and what their terms were. As a result, resolving legal disputes involving unwritten agreements is never easy, quick, or cheap. Remember that no contract can prevent every dispute from occurring. When drafted in a thorough manner, however, contracts can potentially narrow the grounds considerably and save on legal fees down the line.
Seek Knowledgeable Advice
We continue to be surprised at how frequently people rely on "legal advice" from non-lawyers, often through online forums. Laws involving horses can vary tremendously around the country such as stablemen's lien laws, equine activity liability laws, contract laws, and loose equine/livestock laws. If you seek legal advice, turn to a qualified lawyer.
Conclusion
We are proud to serve the equine industry honorably and professionally. At the same time, we recognize that equine owners and businesses would rather devote their time and resources to anything but legal disputes. Don't wait for problems to happen – plan ahead to foresee and prevent them as much as possible.
We wish everyone a fun, safe, and successful year.
This blog post does not constitute legal advice. When questions arise based on specific situations, direct them to a knowledgeable attorney. If you are from another state, please note that ethical restrictions prevent us from working alone with you on your legal matter. Often, we can refer you to a lawyer in your area. We also can be hired to work with lawyers nationwide.
ShareholderJulie Fershtman is considered to be one of the nation's leading attorneys in the field of equine law. She has successfully tried equine cases before juries in four states. A frequent author and speaker on legal issues, she has written ...
