Author Topic: James v. Young: Are Landowners Liable for Horse Riding Injury to Child?  (Read 822 times)

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Offline Elderberry

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Texas Agriculture Law Blog
 Posted on July 2, 2018 by tiffany.dowell

A recent case out of the Waco Court of Appeals, James v. Young, is the real-life version of many landowners’ nightmare.  When a six-year-old child fell off of a horse the landowners allowed him to ride, his parents filed suit.  Did the Farm Animal Liability Act apply to shield the landowners from liability?

The James family and the Young family were friends.  One weekend, the two families were spending time at the Young ranch.  The mothers and two of the children rode horses while several of the men worked cattle.  When the mothers and children returned, six-year-old Bradey James said he wanted to ride the horse as well.  Bradey and another child, Daniel, got on two of the horses and rode down a gravel road.  They turned around and headed back towards other horses up the road and the horses they were riding began running.  Bradey hit his head on the saddle horn, fell off of the horse he was riding, and was injured.

The James family filed suit against Justin and Paul Young for negligent handling of animals claiming that they failed to exercise reasonable care to prevent the horse from injuring Bradey and that they allowed the child, who was only six-years-old, to ride their horse and failed to determine the ability to safely manage the horse before allowing Bradey to ride.

The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Justin and Paul Young and dismissed the case.  The court found no genuine issue of material fact in this case to justify going to trial.  The James family appealed.

Texas Farm Animal Liablity Act

More: https://agrilife.org/texasaglaw/2018/07/02/fala/


Online DB

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The real take away is don't allow others to do things on your property.


Offline Sanguine

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I bet they're not friends any more.

Offline Free Vulcan

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#1 property owner rule - most people, including family, are looking for a payday. Don't give them any reason to fufill their dreams.
The Republic is lost.

Offline thackney

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§ 87.003. Limitation on Liability

Except as provided by Section 87.004, any person, including a farm animal activity sponsor, farm animal professional, livestock producer, livestock show participant, or livestock show sponsor, is not liable for property damage or damages arising from the personal injury or death of a participant in a farm animal activity or livestock show if the property damage, injury, or death results from the dangers or conditions that are an inherent risk of a farm animal activity or the showing of an animal on a competitive basis in a livestock show, including:

(1) the propensity of a farm animal or livestock animal to behave in ways that may result in personal injury or death to a person on or around it;

(2) the unpredictability of a farm animal's or livestock animal's reaction to sound, a sudden movement, or an unfamiliar object, person, or other animal;

(3) with respect to farm animal activities involving equine animals, certain land conditions and hazards, including surface and subsurface conditions;

(4) a collision with another animal or an object; or

(5) the potential of a participant to act in a negligent manner that may contribute to injury to the participant or another, including failing to maintain control over a farm animal or livestock animal or not acting within the participant's ability.

https://www.animallaw.info/statute/tx-equine-activity-liability-chapter-87-liability-arising-equine-activities-or-livestock#s3

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Most of the places my daughters have ridden often have this sign, usually 4 ft tall at the entrance.

Life is fragile, handle with prayer

Offline thackney

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I will add, years ago, my daughter was thrown from her horse at the riding stables where she took lessons and we kept the horse.

She snapped the humorous clear in half up inside the shoulder.  Also broker her thumb on the opposite hand.  Shoulder required surgery, she spent most the summer with pins sticking out her arm.

Never even entered my mind to try and sue.  Even without those signs, we chose her activities.  The owner/coached preached safety often.
Life is fragile, handle with prayer