It took three years for the Schleswig-Holstein Higher Regional Court to rule in the appeal case concerning the deceased stallion Kaiser Milton and it turned out not to be in favour of buyer Burkhard Wahler.
Recap of the Case
Kaiser Milton (by Millennium x Van Deyk x Gajus) was named the 2017 Trakehner Licensing Champion in Neumunster. Bred by Tonny Aan de Stegge in The Netherlands and presented by Dutch Jan-Pieter Dalsem at the licensing, the black sold at auction for 320,000 euro to Burkhard Wahler of Klosterhof Medingen.
Soon after the licensing the stallion turned up lame and unhealthy. Wahler asked for restitution from the Trakehner Society, but had not yet paid the auction price, plus 60,000 euro in taxes.
The stallion was treated in the equine clinic, initially for lameness to the fetlock but it was also discovered that he had four leaky heart valves. Wahler stated that the stallion would be unsuitable for sport. However at the end of September 2018, Kaiser Milton did his 14-day stallion suitability test in Schlieckau. Although he dropped out at the end of the testing, the licensing committee extrapolated him and rewarded him a passing score.
Kaiser Milton died on 18 July 2021 as his heart issues had led to pleural effusion.
Four Year Legal Battle
The two opposing parties Wahler and Dalsem/Trahehner society were involved in a four year legal battle.
In an initial ruling, the district court ruled that the buyers should have requested damages and set a deadline to offer an equivalent/replacement horse for the licensing champion. The buyers did not agree with that ruling.
The Kiel Regional Court did not abandon its judgment and ruled on 22 November 2018 that Wahler has to pay 381,692.50 euro as well as the legal fees. Wahler appealed that decision
On 28 December 2021 the Schleswig-Holstein Higher Regional Court confirmed the ruling that the purchase price for Kaiser Milton has to be paid. The court did not question the lameness and heart issue, but ruled that for a breeding stallion these are irrelevant.
No Restitution for Health Issues
According to the court the buyer was not able to point out a defect that made the horse unsuitable for purchase. Neither the fetlock damage, cited by Wahler, nor the "secondary heart murmur" were considered good enough reasons by the court.
The press release issued by the court stated: “Successful participation in the licensing did not provide the defendant with any final certainty about the horse's state of health. (…) The fetlock damage was not known at the licensing, but it was known that the examination before the licensing did not include the examination of such damage. The approval for the licensing did not indicate that such damage did not exist."
The court stated that, "the cardiac findings in Kaiser Milton also do not represent a defect that entitles the defendant to withdraw. In the examination protocol prepared prior to the auction, an extraneous cardiac murmur is mentioned that must be examined again. Since the findings of the examination protocol determine the contractually agreed quality of the horse, any cardiac findings that can still be observed are deemed to be in accordance with the contract."
The fact that Kaiser Milton died means that "the horse's heart condition worsened and possibly led to his death therefore only means that a risk inherent in the heart condition has materialized."
Read the court press release here (in German).
Related Links
Trakehner Licensing Champion Kaiser Milton Passed Away
Court Rules in Kaiser Milton Case