Equine Law Blog

True or False:  Children under 18 can be parties to a contract.

False.  In most states, people under age 18 are minors and cannot enter into a binding contract with very few exceptions (such as contracts for certain necessities of life).  If you are a party to a contract involving a minor, such as the sale of a pony to a child, make the minor’s parent or legally-appointed guardian a party to the contract.

True or False: When you are asked to care for someone else’s child for the day, you have become the child’s legal guardian.

False.  Guardianships are created by courts.  Those who have custody of someone else’s child for a while, such as riding instructors who take their students to horse shows, are not legal guardians. 

True or False: All equine sales are “buyer beware” transactions where people buy at their own risk and have no recourse against the seller.

False.  Well over a hundred years ago the Latin phrase “caveat emptor” (meaning “buyer beware”) was the prevailing rule that gave buyers the burden to carefully assess a product or item being sold and accept the consequences after the sale was complete.  Not so anymore.  While it is always prudent for buyers to evaluate and assess what they are buying, the “caveat emptor” principle has been replaced over the years by numerous laws, such as consumer protection and deceptive trade practice laws, that are specifically designed to protect buyers in certain transactions.  In addition, warranty statutes can be especially powerful in protecting the rights of those who buy from merchants (businesses that regularly sell goods).  Whether a disgruntled buyer can invoke any of these laws will depend on the terms of the contract and the applicable law.