Trainer Wesley Ward’s million-dollar claim against owner/breeder Ken Ramsey is nearing its trial date. Ramsey recently survived an attempted knockout punch in court but still faces obstacles in his defense of Ward’s claims.
The docket for Jessamine Circuit Court in Nicholasville, Ky., shows the trial is set for Feb. 19. Ward’s lawsuit was filed almost three years ago.
Judge Hunter Daugherty told attorneys during a Jan. 3 hearing the case comes down to one issue: did Ward breach a contract with Ramsey? In court filings Ward says he is due every dollar he billed while Ramsey hopes to prove some horses were not trained as promised or were trained unnecessarily.
During the Jan. 3 hearing, Daugherty denied a motion for summary judgment filed by Ward which, if granted, would have ended the case in Ward’s favor. However, in ruling that a jury will have to decide the outcome, Daugherty told attorneys Ramsey will not be permitted to testify to opinions of how Ward performed.
Daugherty said only expert witnesses will be allowed to testify to opinions. Lay witnesses, he said, will be limited to conveying facts in their testimony, and Ramsey will be treated as a lay witness. Whether that will be problematic for Ramsey remains to be seen, but according to court records Ramsey has not listed an expert witness to testify about Ward’s actions. An illustration of the issue came up when Daugherty laid out a scenario he envisions occurring at trial.
“We’ll just pick one of your strongest arguments, that Ward was keeping horses that he shouldn’t have kept, in other words if a horse had no talent or there was some reason that there was no chance the horse was going to race so it should have been sent back to Mr. Ramsey so it would not have been involved with the $110 per day,” Daugherty posited according to a transcript filed by Ward attorney Grahmn Morgan. “Who is going to come in and say, for any particular horse, or for all of these horses, what was the right strategy for each one of those horses without having an expert to do that….how are you going to come in and say that wasn’t the right decision for that horse.”
“It’s going to be primarily their (Ward and his assistant) own testimony, additionally the testimony of the two other trainers that are fact witnesses in this case, and then just the records,” Ramsey attorney Craig Robertson responded, “because we have the public records which show these are when the horses worked out and these are when the horses raced. Okay? And so, the testimony of what should happen versus the undisputed records of what did happen.”
Daugherty went on to say Ramsey’s claims against Ward for an accounting and for attorney’s fees are not allowed in this type of case. The judge also indicated he would dismiss a claim for conversion of seven 2-year-old horses, saying that he could not find a sinister motive for the filing of an agister’s lien on the horses.
Daugherty informed the attorneys he is also ruling out allowing the jury to decide Ramsey’s claim for breach of good faith and fair dealing. “I think what we have here is a contract claim that is going to encompass all of the issues,” he said. Ramsey’s claim for breach of fiduciary duty is also expected to be dismissed. “I don’t think that applies in this kind of case,” Daugherty said.
Ramsey will also have to deal with statements he made shortly after collection lawsuits were filed by Ward and trainer Mike Maker.
“I was blind-sided,” Ramsey told BloodHorse at the time. “If I had known, I would have gone to the bank and borrowed the money. I have over 2,100 acres and the vast majority of it I don’t owe anything on. My net worth is better than it ever has been, so I’ll go to my banker and borrow the money against the collateral I have and I’ll pay them all off.”
MITCHELL: Ramsey Will Settle With Trainers Who Sued Over Debts
In subsequent court filings, Ramsey attorneys say Ramsey was not aware of later-discovered facts when he made those statements and that they intend prove Ramsey has viable defenses.
Ramsey and Maker subsequently settled, and Maker dismissed his lawsuit. Not so with Ward.
The litigation has taken on a life of its own with scores of pleadings, motions, counter-motions, responses, exhibits, discovery disputes and hearings. Approximately 350 document filings are listed on the court’s online record, and a number of those filings consist of numerous additional documents.
Ward’s complaint says he is seeking “$974,790.40 as of March 15, 2021, pre- and post-judgment interest, together with the charges continuing to accrue after that date for the continued boarding, care, maintenance and training of the Horses, at the rate of $110.00 per day for each horse remaining in the possession of Ward Enterprises,” and other relief.
