Livery contract

About this livery contract

This comprehensive livery agreement provides everything you want in the agreement with your owners and full legal protection for you. It includes provision for details of services, prices and of course the horse or pony. By using this agreement, we are sure you will spend far less time wrestling with client issues, great and small.

This livery agreement is suitable for any yard. It is drawn very flexibly so as to give you the opportunity to edit it easily to suit the exact way you do business. Although it is drawn to protect your interest as strongly as possible, the draftsman has also considered what your clients will think when you send it to them. Your owners will not worry that they have to see a solicitor before they sign. However, as you read it, you may decide to soften some of the strictest suggestions we have made.

The British Horse Society Scotland (BHS Scotland) publishes what they call "an example of a Livery Contract which could be used as a basis upon which to draw up an agreement". To be fair to the BHS Scotland, they do not suggest that it is a good version for you to use as is. We say unequivocally that it is unsuitable for you for two good reasons.

First, the legalistic wording (for example, using "in the event that" instead of the simpler "if") will worry your clients that there are hidden implications in the contract that require their solicitor to review it. They will be reluctant to sign it quickly.

Second, and more importantly, the BHS Scotland livery agreement is sponsored by the British Equine Vets Association, the ILPH and the SSPCA. To be blunt, the entire document is slanted towards care of the horse and legal protection of the horse owner and not the yard owner.

These welfare organisations are trying to nudge yard owners into doing things properly. We have no problem with that agenda. But the aim of the ILPH is to protect horses whereas the aim of Net Lawman is to protect our clients and customers. We think that it is devious and disingenuous to give the equestrian world a draft livery agreement which is actually quite unsuitable for yard owners.

The BHS Scotland does provide very useful "guidelines for a livery contract" which is effectively a memory jogger for matters to include. We have included those points so far as it is in your interest to do so but we have not included matters which we believe might restrict you excessively.

This Net Lawman livery agreement is written as a business tool that you can use for every client. It confirms your terms and their instructions. It compels a client to tell you basic facts about the horse and to disclose any vice. In a word, it enables you to plan and manage more efficiently.

You can also use the livery agreement to explain how the yard works and set down your practical rules and expectations.

The law in this livery agreement

A license is not required to operate a livery yard, and therefore anyone with spare stabling could offer livery. The law in this agreement is common law, so you can make the deal that fits both parties best. Either you can edit the agreement to be your terms and conditions (and use the same version for all customers) or you could edit this contract for each horse or pony you take. Of course we take it for granted that you are aware of equine welfare issues, but they do not impact directly on your contract with your owners.

When to use this livery agreement

A good, readable livery agreement provides a marker to your efficiency just as much as a tidy yard and contented horses. We advise that you should edit the document to exactly what you want, then print copies out ready to give to potential clients.

• Drawn for professional livery yards
• Can be presented to the horse owner as terms and conditions on a “take it or leave it” basis or can form the basis of individual arrangements

This agreement is suitable for full livery. For DIY livery see: Livery agreement: DIY.

Contract features and contents

• Responsibilities and obligations of parties
• Compliance with yard rules
• Use of additional facilities such as cross-country course
• Fees and expenses
• Care of horse
• Termination
• Insurance
• Schedule of service and prices
• Schedule of yard procedures

Reasons to buy from Net Lawman

Full money back guarantee – buy with confidence
This livery contract comes with a no questions asked full money back guarantee. You take no risk that it might not be right. Once you buy it, we’ll give you 30 days to evaluate it in any way you want. If for any reason you’re not happy, just e-mail us and we’ll refund your money in full immediately.

We share a passion for riding and equestrianism
We’ve been riding for longer than we’d like to admit. We’ve been involved in many different aspects of equestrianism, from breeding to competition. We understand the issues that you face as a horse owner because we face the same ones. The Net Lawman equestrianism documents are some of the ones we most commonly use ourselves.

Guidance notes included - prior legal knowledge is not required
Comprehensive guidance notes, written by the author of the document, are included. These notes ensure that you don’t need to be a lawyer or have knowledge of the law to understand which paragraphs you should edit to complete the contract.

Minimal editing required
This livery contract has been written specifically in such a way that you don’t need to spend hours editing it. It uses an approach where you remove the sections that aren’t applicable to you, so you don’t have to add any back, write your own, or worry about whether you are using correct legal language.

Paragraphs have been written to stand alone from each other. Removing one that isn’t applicable to your circumstances doesn’t affect the standing of any other in the agreement.

Plain language minimises future disagreements
Your livery agreement is real law written in plain language that all parties will understand. This will minimise the likelihood of later disputes.

If a dispute does arise and you find yourself in court, the judge will look more favourably on a legal agreement written in plain language over one peppered with complicated legal jargon. Your case will be stronger if it is clear that both sides understood the agreement when it was signed.

Buy once – re-use again and again
You can use the livery agreement as many times as you like for each new client – just create a new document from the master version.

Delivered straight to your inbox
As soon as you complete the secure checkout process, we will send your livery contract straight to your inbox. We will also keep a copy for you for 60 days in our customer area so you can access it even when you are away from your e-mail.

Still unsure whether this is the right document for you?
If you are unsure whether this livery contract is suitable for your particular circumstances, then you have two options. The first is to buy now, evaluate the livery agreement, and use the 30 day, full money back guarantee to obtain a refund if it isn’t suitable. You take no risk in seeing the document. The second option is to contact us and ask. We can’t offer you legal advice on your situation, but we can help you find the document you want. We aim to respond to your question within 24 hours.