The shoe is back on neither foot following a California Court of Appeal decision to order a new trial in a seven-figure civil case filed by Carlo Vaccarezza against veterinarian Dr. Vince Baker for negligence following a subpar effort by Little Alexis in a Breeders’ Cup race.
The case came before the appellate court after Vaccarezza, a well-known restaurateur in Florida and now Lexington, Ky. and an owner-trainer of Thoroughbreds, and his wife Priscilla won a $1.06 million verdict against Baker in Los Angeles Superior Court after a jury found the veterinarian negligent.
The suit centered around Baker’s pre-race treatment of Little Alexis, who finished ninth in the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) at Santa Anita. She was a 3-year-old at the time and came into the race after finishing third in the Test Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course and fourth in the Cotillion Stakes (G1) at Parx Racing. Carlo Vaccarezza trained her for Priscilla Vaccarezza Racing.
According to court records, Baker was accused of improperly evaluating Little Alexis for a lump on her jugular vein before the race. Previous reporting by BloodHorse noted her serum amyloid A pre-race blood test was highly elevated with a 2,534 reading, a marker for inflammation and infection.
The jury heard evidence that Baker did not inform the Vaccarezzas of the test result before the Breeders’ Cup race, that he should have done so, and that he should have scratched the filly. She finished ninth.
The jury agreed and returned a verdict of $1.06 million, the difference in Little Alexis’ appraised 2014 value of $1.5 million and the amount of her sale at auction the following year.
Judge Richard J. Burdge Jr. reversed the jury verdict in May 2022 in a judgment notwithstanding the verdict, known in legal circles as a JNOV, and dismissed the case. Burdge reasoned that a key expert witness called to testify for Vaccarezza did not state his opinions about the matter adequately.
Experts are permitted to render opinions in court so long as they are expressed within a reasonable degree of certainty. The trial court judge found that Dr. Michael Chavones, a veterinarian licensed in four states but not California, failed to meet that standard.
Downey: Vaccarezzas’ $1M Legal Win Stricken Down by Trial Judge
The three-judge court of appeals panel reversed the JNOV, but it ordered a new trial instead of reinstating the million-dollar verdict.
“The judgment is reversed,” presiding Judge John Segal wrote. “The trial court is directed to vacate its orders granting Baker’s motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict and denying his motion for a new trial, and enter new orders denying Baker’s motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict and granting his motion for a new trial.” Judges Dennis M. Perluss and Gonzalo Martinez concurred, making the decision unanimous.
Unless the appellate court reconsiders its decision and reverses itself, which is highly improbable, both parties are back to square one. If not settled, both sides will have to tee it up again, now some nine years following the filly’s Breeders’ Cup.
Baker has been in the media spotlight in recent years. According to previous BloodHorse reporting, Baker is said to have prescribed the application of Otomax to Medina Spirit ‘s rump before the 2021 Kentucky Derby, leading to the horse’s disqualification after finishing first. Most recently, in a negotiated settlement, the regulator that oversees veterinarians in California placed Baker on probation for four years for negligence in the practice of veterinary medicine.
