Equine Immunity Statute: Suing for Injuries Caused by Equine Activities

 Posted on December 00,0000 in Personal Injury

Activities involving horses in Wisconsin are referred to as equine activities and the Wisconsin legislature has determined that these are inherently risky activities. As such, in many circumstances, if you are injured while riding a horse or at a horseback riding facility, you may not be able to sue anybody.

What Does “Inherently Risky” Mean?

Inherently risky means there is a danger or condition that is an integral part of equine activities including all of the following:

• The propensity of a horse to behave in a way that may result in injury or death to a person on or near it;
• The unpredictable nature of a horse’s reaction to movement and sound;
• A collision with either an animal or object; and
• The potential for a person who is participating in a horse-related activity to act negligently, to fail to control the horse, or to not act within his or her ability.

Wisconsin’s Equine Immunity Statute

Under the Wisconsin Equine Immunity Statute, if you are participating in any equine-related activity, you will be not be held responsible for injuries and damaged caused to other participants in equine activities. What this means for Wisconsin residents, or visitors to Wisconsin who engage in horseback riding and other equine activities, is that negligent equine participants are generally not liable for the injuries they cause to other equine participants. As long as appropriate warning signs are posted, even acts of negligence by the professionals at the equine facility are immune from liability.

How Does the Equine Immunity Statute Affect Your Claim?

What this means for you is that you bear the risk of injury if you are injured participating in horse-related activities. This not only means that others are immune from any injuries you suffer while riding a horse, but responsible negligent parties may be immune from lawsuit if you are injured as a passenger in a carriage ride pulled by a horse, at a horse show, or at a horse farm due to the negligence of the owner.

Is There Any Hope for Damage Recovery If You Have an Equine-Related Injury? Injuries that are sustained in horse-related accidents are often extremely serious, and sometimes result in death, or a requirement of long-term care. If you are hurt in any activity involving a horse, do not assume that the negligent party will be shielded by immunity laws. There are situations where there is no immunity protection offered by the statute. For example, you may be able to recover compensation due to the intentional acts of others that led to your injury.

If you have been hurt in an accident involving a horse, call or email the experienced Milwaukee personal injury attorneys at our firm today, and let us help you fight for your rights.

Source:

http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/895/II/481/1/e