Eventer faces huge legal bill over horse sale

Former Blenheim Horse Trials winner Patricia (Paddy) Muir is facing a £150,000 legal bill after one of her pupils won his appeal arguing that she sold him a “defective” horse.

John Palmer bought the horse, Toby, for £2,750 from Ms Muir in 2007. He went lame after purchase and had to be euthanased in 2008. Mr Palmer launched court action against Ms Muir, who denied that she had owned Toby, saying she was simply the agent.

Mr Palmer, from Corbridge, Northumberland, lost the first 2 court hearings, but at a court of appeal in London last week (5 March), judge Sir Stanley Burton upheld his appeal. This costly legal saga could establish a precedent for vendors being required to reveal if they are agents.

“It could have a big impact for agents having to disclose their role,” said equine law specialist Jacqui Fulton, Mr Palmer’s solicitor.

The retrial will be in around 6 months’ time.

This article was first published in Horse & Hound magazine (13 March 2014)

Martha Terry

H&H features editor

Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on dogs of all shapes and sizes. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs, one a street dog from Gambia who was abandoned at three weeks old. Now, her constant companion, whether by her feet at her desk or walking cross-country courses, is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.