A Horse of a Different Color: A Study of Color Bias, Anti-Trust, and Restraint of Trade Violations in the Equine Industry

Authors

Mary W. Craig

First Page

433

Document Type

Article

Abstract

In 2000, Kay Floyd sued the American Quarter Horse Association ("AQHA") as a result of a registration rule Floyd alleged discriminated against her economically. She did not challenge the right of AQHA to create registration rules that maintained the integrity of the breed, but she challenged its right to prevent her from registering a horse born to two AQHA-registered parents that fit every registration criterion except one. Floyd challenged AQHA's right to prevent her from registering a second pairing from the same parents because that foal was born through embryo transplant in the same year as a foal born through natural birth. Floyd brought suit under the restraint of trade provisions of the Texas Business & Commerce Code. Those provisions comply with federal statutes against anti-trust and restraint of trade, and comply with the United States Supreme Court rulings concerning those topics. The Texas lower court that heard Floyd's complaint agreed with her allegations and gave AQHA one of its few adverse rulings relating to the way it ran its business. The result was a settlement with Floyd, registration of both her horses, and a change in multiple AQHA registration rules. This article examines Floyd, its long-range effect on AQHA, and the implications of the ruling on other voluntary or non-profit associations, both within and without the animal industry. In particular, this article applies the principles of the Floyd ruling to the American Paint Horse Association.

Recommended Citation

Mary W. Craig, A Horse of a Different Color: A Study of Color Bias, Anti-Trust, and Restraint of Trade Violations in the Equine Industry, 22 St. Thomas L. Rev. 433 (2010).
Available at: https://scholarship.stu.edu/stlr/vol22/iss3/5