Canadian Equine Law: A Guide For Anyone Working With Horses In Canada

by Catherine E. Willson

Overview

Learn how to protect your equine interests! From Canada’s leading equine law practitioner, Catherine Willson – and Canada’s leading publisher of legal expertise for the layperson, Self-Counsel Press – comes this much-anticipated guide to equine law in Canada. Canadian Equine Law is a concise guide that includes information written specifically for the layperson in the horse industry. Readers can explore chapters filled with precedents and case studies, explained in plain language, making it simpler to understand the rights and obligations of anyone working with horses in any capacity. Learn about the legalities of purchasing, selling, stabling, and caring for horses – and how to use contracts (as well as what to watch out for in them). Farmers, veterinarians, and anyone else working in or around the equine industry will benefit from having this invaluable information at their fingertips.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781770405424
Publisher:	Self-Counsel Press, Inc.
Publication date:	01/15/2023
Series:	Legal Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	112
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Catherine E. Willson, LLB has practiced equine law in Canada for more than three decades. Willson is an Honourary Governor of The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair (“RAWF”), and chair of the RAWF Risk Management Committee. As the go-to on horse law in Canada, she has written many articles for Horse Sport and other publications.

Table of Contents

Introduction xv 1. The Business of Horses xv 2. Sole Proprietorship xvi 3. Partnership xvii 4. Corporations xix 5. Co-ownership Agreements and Horse Syndications xx 6. Put It in Writing! xxi Part I: Horse Ownership and Leasing 1 1 Purchase and Sale 1 1. Buyer Beware 1 2. Conditions and Warranties 3 3. Remedies for Breach 4 4. Provincial Legislation: The Sale of Goods Act 6 5. Put It in Writing 8 2 Using an Agent when Buying or Selling a Horse 10 1. What Is an Agent? 11 2. What Your Agent Is Permitted to Do on Your Behalf 12 2.1 Key points to remember regarding the authority of the agent to bind the principal 14 3. The Relationship between the Principal and Agent 15 4. Compensation 16 5. A Review of the Rules when Using an Agent to Buy or Sell a Horse 16 5.1 Rule 1: Be clear on your instructions to an agent, preferably in writing 16 5.2 Rule 2: Use a written Agreement of Purchase and Sale 17 5.3 Rule 3: Contract directly with the other party when buying or selling 17 5.4 Rule 4: Find an agent you trust 17 5.5 Rule 5: Remember who is paying the agent’s fee 18 3 Leasing a Horse 19 1. Responsibility of Owner of the Horse to Lessee 20 2. Obligations of the Lessee to the Horse Owner 21 3. Common Problems in the Lease of a Horse 22 4. Lease Agreements 23 4.1 Parties 23 4.2 Term 23 4.3 Purpose 24 4.4 Lease payments and ongoing expenses 24 4.5 Risk 25 4.6 Other terms 25 Part II: Breeding, Stabling, and Caring for Horses 27 4 Breeding Horses 27 1. The Stud Farm Operator 27 2. The Mare Owner 28 2.1 Booking or usage fee 28 2.2 Stud fee or service fee 29 2.3 Boarding fees 29 2.4 Veterinary charges for breeding 30 2.5 Artificial Insemination (AI) 30 2.6 Embryo reproductive technology 31 2.7 Broodmare leases 31 3. Lien Rights 31 4. Breeding Contracts 32 4.1 Identify the stallion and mare to be bred 32 4.2 Process, timing, and other details related to the breeding 32 4.3 Promise of mare owner to pay service fee and terms of payment 33 4.4 Consequences where mare fails to conceive or produce a live foal 33 4.5 Board and other expenses 33 4.6 Health of mare and stallion and provision of a veterinary certificate for mare being serviced 34 4.7 Allocation of risk of loss, insurance 34 4.8 Contract null and void if the stallion or mare dies or becomes unfit for breeding purposes 35 4.9 Provision for the execution of the certificate, if any, by the owner of the stallion to register the foal 35 4.10 Remedies on default 35 4.11 Entire agreement clause and execution 35 5 Stable Ownership and Operation 36 1. The Duty of Care Required of a Stable Operator/Owner 36 2. Contract and Tort Law 37 3. Bailment 38 4. Occupier’s Liability Act 38 5. Horse Riding Safety Act (Ontario) 39 6. Criminal Negligence 40 7. Risk Prevention 41 7.1 Annual reviews 41 7.2 Boarding agreements and waivers 42 7.3 Lien for unpaid boarding fees 43 7.4 Insurance 44 7.5 Provincial workers’ compensation and 45 insurance protections 6 Employment on the Horse Farm 46 1. Hiring Employees 46 1.1 Write a detailed job description 46 1.2 Insist on a written resumé and references 47 1.3 Prepare a good interview 47 1.4 Be mindful of employment obligations under provincial human rights codes 48 1.5 Follow up 48 2. The Employment Relationship 49 2.1 Duty of an employer to protect workers 49 3. Provincial Workers’ Compensation Systems 50 4. Private Insurance 51 5. Employment Statutes 51 6. Dismissal of an Employee 52 7. Independent Contractors 53 7 Waivers and Releases 56 1. Form of the Written Waiver (Release) 57 2. Minors and Releases 61 3. Final Thoughts on Waivers 61 8 Veterinarians: Liability and the Standard of Care 63 1. When Mistakes Happen 64 1.1 Breach of contract 64 1.2 Negligence 64 1.3 Trespass 65 1.4 Bailment 66 1.5 Deadlines 67 1.6 Damages 68 2. Pre-purchase Examinations 69 2.1 Legal Tips: Pre-purchase examinations 69 3. Pre-purchase Examinations: Examples from the Courts 71 9 Poop, Noise, and Other Nuisances 74 1. What Is a Nuisance? 74 2. What Can Be Done about Nuisances? 75 3. What You Should Consider If Planning an Event 77 4. A Note about Fireworks 78 5. A Note for Property Owners 78 Part III: Other Important Legal Issues 79 10 Kids, Dogs, and Horses: What Can Go Wrong? 79 1. Kids 80 2. Duty of Care 81 3. Dogs 82 4. Scienter 82 5. Protect Yourself by Following These Tips 87 11 Insurance in the Equine World: Cover Your Assets 89 1. Types of Insurance Available to the Horse Industry 89 1.1 Liability insurance 89 1.2 Mortality (life) insurance 90 1.3 Major medical/surgical coverage 91 2. Insurance Applications 92 3. Conditions in a Policy 94 4. Time Limits 96 5. Some Simple Rules When Considering Insurance Policies 97 12 Divorce and Horses 99 1. Separation 99 2. Distribution of Property 100 3. Ownership Issues 101 4. Support 102 5. Domestic Contracts (Cohabitation, Marriage, Separation) 103 6. Conclusion 105 13 Wills and Estates: Over My Dead Body 106 1. Introduction to Wills and Estates 106 2. How to Make a Will 107 3. Horses in Wills 108 x Canadian Equine Law 4. Care of Horses in Wills 108 5. Trusts 109 5.1 Beneficiary of a trust 110 6. Life Insurance 111 7. Example of How the Courts May View Intent 111 8. Charities 112 9. Wills and Estates Summary 112 Download Kit 113