Greed and the feeling of invincibility. 
It’s an amazing story but, I guess, not a new one. Puzzling that it took so long and so much$$ before a complaint emerged and even more puzzling that the trainer worked against his own interest. I agree with other posters that greed can fuel arrogance, which is why crooks get caught.
Wow, what a depressing read.
[QUOTE=LaurieB;8496822]
Which is why this continues to happen. Because people blame the victim.[/QUOTE]
Seems to me it continues to happen because there will always be scammers and because some people have more money than sense.
According to the documents, the relationship between the Kassems and Matt Martin went on for four years or so - the first misrepresented horses were purchased in 2011, and he left in 2015. And it seems like he left of his own accord rather than being fired or asked to leave. That’s a long time for the Kassems to have maybe figured out at least some of what was going on. I’m guessing there’s lots more backstory here.
Just looking at a couple of pics of the trainer, I am going to guess that he is an extremely charismatic individual - as many scammers are. Doesn’t make it right to scam folks, but the fact that the industry tends to attract the wealthy while being subject to very little specific regulation makes it ripe for the pickings.
As someone who has only owned two horses in my life, I learned things from the acquisition of each one to inform future acquisitions. These people apparently did not. Yeah scammers shouldn’t scam, and if it takes a lawsuit to out them, I guess that’s one way to skin the cat. If you can’t afford a lawsuit, there’s alway social media.
This should be required reading and it is an easy read, not in legalese.
I also cringed reading “investment” and “close personal relationship”. But…con men and women like this always seem nice, usually very good looking and well kept are pretty glib and lie without a second thought.
Even in my own circle, I hear people talking about how good their Pro is. All I can do is drop hints, they pay no attention, denial is a wonderful thing when you sink a bunch of money into a fraud and refuse to believe it. Just ask the victims of those spectacular Ponzi schemes. They aren’t stupid but get sucked into trusting somebody they think really cares about them.
Dont blame the victim on this. She hasn’t been around long enough to develop the deep skepticism long time horse folk have. The kind of skepticism that always makes me wonder when a friend raves about how their Pro cares for them as a friend and has their best interests at heart…
Skepticism is your friend in the horse world, I don’t care who you are dealing with.
I used to be offended and resentful when new clients were suspicious of me and asked the kind of questions these people should have.
I guess I need to read stories like this to remind me WHY people were suspicious and questioning regardless of my good reputation.
I don’t know the plaintiff or her kid, but it seems sad to me that her mother could have bought Rumba for her made Junior Hunter and had plenty of money left over.
As soon as I hear words like “doesn’t need X-rays, lameness tests, etc” I wonder immediately “what are they hiding”. Sad that people well versed in business and/or real estate can still get taken buying a horse!
[QUOTE=Groom&Taxi;8496620]
Well, that was an entertaining read. I am absolutely flabbergated at how long it took the plaintiff to get a clue. I don’t know anything about law, but anyone who gets taken for a ride that extensive doesn’t deserve any relief.[/QUOTE]
You would be creating an argument for no regulation and everyone being required to be quite expert. Are you sure you want to go there, with a business like horse trading that’s complex at best and currently somewhat dishonest at worst?
It seems to me that the right way to go is to nail the bad characters first. Then, in a later chapter when some transparency has been established as the industry’s usual way of doing business, you can start to hold clueless buyers accountable for doing due diligence with respect to choosing their agents. But I wouldn’t start there; it’s asking too much of non-horsemen right now… with trainers currently being dishonest.
[QUOTE=eclipse;8496954]
As soon as I hear words like “doesn’t need X-rays, lameness tests, etc” I wonder immediately “what are they hiding”. Sad that people well versed in business and/or real estate can still get taken buying a horse![/QUOTE]
I get hired frequently as an equine expert witness for court cases such as this one. This kind of situation happens over and over again. The majority of people out there would never think of purchasing real estate, a car, a home, etc. without an inspection and an iron clad, legal contract. It is amazing that the opposite happens all the time in the horse world…and for big money! No contract. No vet check. I think a big part of the problem is you have inexperienced horse owners purchasing an animal that is perceived more as a pet and less like valuable property like a car or house.
There is way too little transparency in horses anyway. No CarFax. A culture of MYOB and keep your mouth shut, even alert people can get taken until they learn to trust no one and just how deep the truth can be buried.
People can get emotionally involved with the intended purchase too, get emotionally attached far more then to a used car or house. Con men take advantage of that, although at this level, you don’t hear " the truck is coming" as a sales technique like you do at the opposite end of the spectrum.
[QUOTE=mvp;8496819]
Martin got hired as the family’s pro and installed on their farm (with 25-30 of his own sales horses) only after he had botched several purchases…or perhaps the problems with the horses came to light more slowly and after he was deep into his business relationship with the family?
The first mare sent to be sold as a broodmare and resold to the kid as a riding horse is remarkable.
I’m glad deep-pocketed HOs are finally doing what it takes to hold horse traders to a standard of transparency. I can’t believe people spend (often) real estate-sized hunks of money and don’t expect the process to be better regulated. IMO, lawsuits are how the industry gets cleaned up.[/QUOTE]
you have to wonder if someone tipped the owners off after the bulk of this went down, thus the time lag and the span of the case
Me, I say “Go Getum Sister”.
[QUOTE=mvp;8497042]
You would be creating an argument for no regulation and everyone being required to be quite expert. Are you sure you want to go there, with a business like horse trading that’s complex at best and currently somewhat dishonest at worst?
It seems to me that the right way to go is to nail the bad characters first. Then, in a later chapter when some transparency has been established as the industry’s usual way of doing business, you can start to hold clueless buyers accountable for doing due diligence with respect to choosing their agents. But I wouldn’t start there; it’s asking too much of non-horsemen right now… with trainers currently being dishonest.[/QUOTE]
In this particular case, it’s the length of time that the shenanigans appear to have gone on and the fact that when the plaintiff and primary defendant parted ways, it was on the defendant’s terms that really diminish any tendency I might have to feel for the plaintiff.
Fool me once - or twice - or maybe even three times, shame on you. Fool me ten times over the course of several years, shame on me. The plaintiff may be a lovely person with much going on in her life who trusted the charming trainer to do the right thing, but given how much she was able to discover after the fact, I suspect she didn’t want to see any problems until after the relationship went south.
I don’t disagree that in theory it would be nice to clean up the industry by nailing the bad characters. But I have my doubts that transparency is achievable.
[QUOTE=starhorse;8496792]
Question from the complaint:
“29. Ultimately, the horse was declared to be unable to be used and Kassem was forced to make an insurance claim on the horse for loss of use. Unfortunately, Kassem was only able to recover 70% of her loss and so Kassem sustained damages of $82,500. Kassem was also required to surrender the horse to the insurance carrier to be destroyed.”
If you collect on loss of use through your insurance company, is it typically a requirement that you surrender the horse to be put down? I suppose it would deter insurance fraud but… if your show horse has an irreversible injury, it seems sad that you have to choose between using a policy you paid for and giving a happy retirement to your horse.[/QUOTE]
As far as I know, yes. You have to euthanize the horse to claim loss of use benefits:(
[QUOTE=findeight;8497083]
There is way too little transparency in horses anyway. No CarFax. A culture of MYOB and keep your mouth shut, even alert people can get taken until they learn to trust no one and just how deep the truth can be buried.[/QUOTE]
HorseFax! Business opportunity? Ha!
[QUOTE=Soaponarope;8497091]
As far as I know, yes. You have to euthanize the horse to claim loss of use benefits:([/QUOTE]
For this poor horse who was actually falling down from the pain? I don’t think that’s a bad end. Just think of the “horsemen” who drugged her up to keep her going and get her sold.
I wish me and my clients had sued when we bought from one of the parties in this suit. That horse ended up dead too.
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Yeah, the names here are not a big surprise.
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Wow. Reading those accusations are mind boggling. There is no good explanation for why MM would screw over his own client with lame horses - wouldn’t he want her to win and build his rep? And at what point would client stop opening her wallet and apparently her home? I suppose it is just the quick money, dollar signs. I have certainly seen it before but not with multiple horses. If the claims are true and the horses couldn’t perform he certainly didn’t help his own business. At any rate, I’m kind of surprised that he was even trading in such expensive horses. I wouldn’t pay that to someone - if I had the money! - unless they had a very distinguished record.
One thing that I have always wondered about is why USEF doesn’t make trainer show records available? Right now you can just get horse results from USEF right? Am I right about that?
When you are choosing a trainer it’s very helpful for a lay person to be able to verify and know what they’ve done. Parents are very vulnerable to a smooth talker.
It’s wrong to focus blame on the victim. When you enter in a real estate or automobile transaction, there are well known standard procedures and contracts. Nothing is “standard” in horse sales. It’s not easy to be “in the know” enough to judge a horse trainer or horse sales/purchase agent, or to know what features your pre-purchase exam should include or how to interpret the results. I don’t think that it is unreasonable for a person with no prior experience in the horse world to assume that trainers or agents in the horse world are following the law. It’s a sad statement about the horse world that most of us think it is naive or foolish to think for a moment that a trainer or agent isn’t out to rip you off.
Did everyone see the opinion in the piece in this week’s Chron of Horse about the scrourge of undisclosed commissions and back room deals where the horse is “flipped” and its price tag inflated, unbeknownst to the client? This lawsuit could be Exhibit A to that article.
I’m glad to see lawsuits like this. Trainers and sellers need to know they will be held accountable for misrepresentations and non-disclosures.
This guy should go to jail for child endangerment, too.
