Complicated dispute over a sold mare

[MooreAcres]

Thanks for your responses guys. I'll let me friend know what you all had to say.

 

[Maple Hollow Farm]

This may not be what you want to hear but as the buyer is the owner of the horse and none of the other issues were in the contract there really isnt a whole lot of choice except just try to negotiate terms for the breeding. Personally I would have just held on to the filly if I wanted a foal out of her that badly and sold her later but that obviously doesnt help just had to say it. Sorry and hope they can come to some sort of agreement. Good Luck!

 

[Magic]

This is a tough one. If someone were to ask me ahead of time about co-owning a mare or retaining breeding rights to a mare, I'd say "DON'T". It's just way too complicated, as you've seen.

(I don't know who either party is, so this is just based on what I've read and my own opinions)

I think that the buyer is fully justified in wanting the filly insured. I would want the same thing. I would also want reassurance in the form of a contract that all expenses would be guaranteed. Frankly, trying to get a foal from this horse is a logistical nightmare, and IMO the seller would be much better off to just accept the payoff from the buyer, in installments as needed, and forget about it. Trying to pursue it is going to be even worse than it is now. The buyer is worried about her beloved horse, and expenses, and seller is going to end up paying a possible fortune to get a foal from said horse. Just the breeding costs, mare care, etc. What if the mare needed colic surgery, or intense medical care? Not worth it, IMHO.

 

[ruffian]

IMO - and only IMO - the seller should just walk away. The buyer has agreed to the terms of the breeding, and according to the first contract "All costs directly related to foaling will be paid by SELLER" this could imply that the SELLER be responsible for insuring the mare during breeding AND foaling. so if the BUYER chose to have someone else foal out the mare, the SELLER would be responsible for paying the cost. Most farms are $300+ for foaling out. So in addition to a stud fee, there would be the insurance fee, plus transport if the BUYER cannot transport, plus foaling out costs. Would the resulting foal be worth the $$ for that?

Another option would be to accept payments on the $275.

I think the Buyer is being as upfront as possible, but is in a hard situation.

 

[sedeh]

I don't think I would have ever sold(or bought) a filly with a "first live foal" contract to begin with. I certainly think the buyer has the right to ensure the safety of her filly and is not being unreasonable with her request. If I were the seller....I'd walk away or take the $275 in payments.

 

[funnybunny]

OUCH!

Sounds to me like that the Seller could wind up paying thousands and thousands for a foal out of that mare.

With demands like that and constant mention of the lawyer, I wouldn't even want to find out what might be next demand be.

If it were me, I'd walk away.

 

[vvf]

I think the seller should just write it all off and walk away as a lesson learned.

 

[Littleum]

Have to agree with the other posters: unless the potential foal is going to be well worth all the extra expense, it's not worth pursuing.

I think the buyer is really being civil about all this. Her situation has changed, she's offering to throw some money at it to make it even, trying to work with the buyer but trying to avoid getting hit with the short end of the stick.

 

[attwoode]

I have a couple of ideas, but a lawyer I am not:

BTW - a lawyer usually costs a lot more than $275... Hmmmm, maybe she didn't really talk to one.

1).Seller could offer to buy the mare back.

2.)Create separate breeding contract that includes other means of addressing the buyers concerns. Maybe no insurance but Seller agrees to price in event of death or injury and agrees to all costs associated with breeding.

It seems reasonable and consistent with contract that Seller should pay breeding, transportation, and a vet fees associated with foal and care. Also seems reasonable that Buyer should be willing to uphold contract for care of mare up to delivery since she agreed to that - this seems like a strong negotiation point and one both parties should agree is not a good idea. Since there has been mention of good faith, they should attempt to come to agreeable, mutually acceptable terms. Sounds like the buyer wants to protect her horse and not incurr costs, that leaves some room for a reasonable solution.

Good luck!

 

[Reble]

I must agree, accept payments on the $275.00

Do another contract if possible now, that if balance is not paid within a certain time period

which they both can agree with or Filly will be returned to the seller with a certain

deposit kept and give refund. Might be too late now.

This should have been in the first contract?

Myself, give her more time to pay and than walk away, lesson again learned....

Contracts only as good as they are written. No-Sad

 

[turtlecreek]

Here's to hoping your friend can cut her losses and move on from this a little bit more wise.

If what you posted was the entire original contract, I feel it was way too vague to cover what your friend is trying to collect now. And yes, insurance is way way expensive. Dont' forget to read the fine print and everything in between. You can't even collect on most insurance policies unless you do extensive life saving measures, possibly into the 10's of thousands of dollars.

I just wonder why your friend didn't keep this filly until she got the the foal she wanted?

 

[Riverdance]

I am a Realtor and know that contracts are often not worth the paper they are written on. Yours was too vague. But then, even if it were written by a lawyer, another lawyer could find loopholes.

Every contract ever written has some kind of loophole.

I would say that the buyer has every right to make sure that their horse was safe and sound. They also have every right to not incure extra expenses or the loss of their mare if there should be complications. That being said, she is sticking with her side of the agreement, as she sees it. The seller wants a foal, and the buyer is agreeing for her to have that foal, but not at any of her expense and preferably not at the expense of loosing her mare, and if she does, she gets the money back that she paid for it.

I too would try to get the $275 in small payments and be done with it. This is not worth fighting over or loosing a potential future sale over. The market is flooded with horses and foals right now, so look at it as you get $275 and do not have the expense of trying to get a live foal that probably would not begin to get your money back.

 

[turtlecreek]

More good points. Well said, Riverdance.