Judge finds in favour of Tattersalls in case against Tom George and Alex Elliott

Tattersalls auction house has won its legal case against trainer Tom George and bloodstock agent Alex Elliott over the disputed purchase of Lariat at the 2019 November Horses in Training sale in Newmarket.

The Mayor's and City of London Court heard three days of evidence last month and Judge Hellman took two hours on Tuesday morning to hand down his verdict, which found George and Elliott jointly liable to pay more than £95,000 to Tattersalls. Costs are to be determined at an adjourned hearing.

Elliott signed for the then three-year-old colt out of Andrew Balding's yard on instruction from George but subsequent veterinary tests carried out in the immediate wake of the sale pointed to breathing issues.

Following extensive investigation of Lariat's breathing conducted by vets at George's behest and under Tattersalls dispute procedures, the horse was sent back to Newmarket eight days later to undergo two sets of tests in front of a 'wind panel' made up of three veterinary experts.

Tattersalls auction house in NewmarketCredit: Edward Whitaker

The panel watched and listened to Lariat exercise up Warren Hill before undergoing endoscopic examination at an adjacent stable.

Although all three panel vets found significant evidence of laryngeal hemiplegia – a condition which restricts airflow – during the scoping of Lariat, they independently concluded the horse had made no noise when galloping past them on Warren Hill.

Judge Hellman pointed both to Tattersalls' conditions of sale and what he described as "a wide body of expert opinion" which backed up the view that both tests needed to fail in order for a horse to be considered returnable by the buyer.

The judge placed significant weight on the evidence given by Dr Bruce Bladon, who was presented as an expert witness by the plaintiff’s legal team and who spoke strongly in favour of the need to observe a horse making "a typical respiratory noise" as well as showing evidence of "laryngeal disfunction".

Bladon had also argued that head carriage could also play a part in whether a horse made a noise and that ridden exercise was more reliable than exercise on a lunge rein – the test carried out immediately post-sale at the instruction of Elliott which had revealed "an inspiratory whistle".

The judge drew a sharp distinction with some evidence provided by the defence's veterinary expert, which he said at times "strayed perilously close to the boundary between witness and advocate".

The hearing also spent a long period examining Tattersalls' conditions of sale, which the defence had attempted to argue were subject to a series of implied terms and also that they were "excessively onerous" when it came to the policy of returns.

While accepting the defence observations that the conditions of sale differed from other sales houses, the judge described Tattersalls' rules as, "not onerous", "striking a balance between the interests of vendor and purchaser", and "expressed in plain English".

Alex Elliott: struck the winning bid for Lariat on behalf of Tom GeorgeCredit: Laura Green

Elliott's defence had sought to argue that in the event payment was still due, it was George who bore sole responsibility as he (Elliott) was only acting on the trainer's behalf.

The judge decreed that in the absence of a pre-signed purchase authorisation, the two men were jointly responsible for the purchase as stated in condition 5.4 of the conditions of sale, and that the long-standing business relationship between the two was evidence that George "relied on the knowledge and experience" of Elliott.

Once costs and interest have been agreed at the adjourned session, the defendants' financial burden is very likely to exceed £100,000, even though in February 2020 Tattersalls resold Lariat for much less than the original sale price to continue his career with Ado McGuinness, for whom he has failed to win in 25 starts.

In a statement, Tattersalls marketing director Jimmy George welcomed the judgement of the court.

Jimmy George: vets on the independent wind panel 'are all held in the highest regard by the equine veterinary community'Credit: Laura Green

"We are pleased that the judge has ruled in favour of Tattersalls and upheld the integrity of our conditions of sale. Mr George has aired his views regarding our terms and conditions and associated procedures.

"His views have been fully considered by the court during a three-day trial and each and every defence raised by Mr George has been dismissed by the judge.

"Tattersalls' conditions of sale have always been carefully calibrated to strike a fair balance between the rights of purchasers and vendors and we are pleased the court has upheld their validity and effect.

"It should be noted that the judge made specific reference to the published article on the Endoscopy of Horses written by eminent equine vets Deirdre Carson and Sidney Ricketts which concluded that the methodology used by Tattersalls to adjudicate on wind disputes is 'the fairest environment for buyers and sellers'."

The statement continued: "The court has also found that Tattersalls correctly arbitrated a dispute between two parties with the assistance of its independent wind panel comprising three experienced vets who are all held in the highest regard by the equine veterinary community."

Read more:

Tattersalls presents case in non-payment dispute with trainer Tom George

Tattersalls test neither 'fair nor reasonable' in payment dispute

'The racing industry is watching' – Tattersalls versus Tom George case concludes

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