Victoria Rigby

Equine Animal Law

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Profile
Victoria has combined her personal interest together with her legal expertise in order to build a solid practice in this niche area.

She has considerable experience in advising on the application of the Animals Act 1971.

Briefs include advising and representing:
- Riding schools
- Livery yards
- Racing stables
- Horse owners/dealers/riders/employees
- Dog owners/dog bite victims
- Livestock owners/landowners

Through her work in this field she has gained a thorough understanding of the legal and evidential requirements and is confident that she can guide clients through the murky waters of the Animals Act 1971 and the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.

She has received instructions from leading Defendant equine law firms P Jane MD Phillips and Darbys Solicitors. Expert and factual evidence are key in this area and Victoria understands and appreciates what is needed in order to bring and defend claims successfully. She is robust when necessary but equally can be sensitive to clients' needs.

Victoria is happy to receive instructions from both Claimants and Defendants.

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Victoria has gained a reputation as an expert in this field. Over the past twenty years she has developed considerable experience in cases involving horses dogs and cows – from livestock escaping onto highways to catastrophic injury caused by animals. She also has experience of high value equine valuation cases and has worked alongside the country’s leading experts in this field. Victoria has a thorough understanding of the Animals Act 1971.

Cases involving animals often result in serious and catastrophic injury. Victoria has dealt with cases involving paraplegia and traumatic brain injury following accidents involving animals.

Victoria is a member of the British Equestrian Federation Judicial Panel. Her work in this field involves dispute resolution in cases involving anti-doping and national team selection up to Olympic level.

Insurance Fraud

Victoria has a wealth of experience in insurance fraud litigation on behalf of insurers including LVI, induced and staged accidents, phantom passenger claims, fraud rings, exaggerated injury and hire claims. Victoria also has extensive experience of Health and Safety Litigation through her Employers’ and Public Liability work including Highways Litigation. Through her forensic analytical skills, Victoria has had significant success in securing case dismissals and Fundamental Dishonesty findings for Defendants.

In relation to road traffic accidents, she has considerable knowledge of the following:
– Low velocity impact collisions
– Induced and staged accidents
– Phantom Passenger claims
– Fraud rings
– Exaggerated injury and loss claims
– Hire Claims

In addition, Victoria has general experience in fraudulent personal injury claims including tripping and slipping where she has had considerable success at Court. She has a thorough understanding of Social Media and how it may be used evidentially.

Victoria can be relied upon for her frank, straight talking approach, whether advising in conference, drafting pleadings or in Court. She is prepared to take a robust view when appropriate whilst being sensitive to the concerns of her clients in what can be difficult and testing litigation.

Personal Injury

Victoria’s practice covers all aspects of Personal Injury Litigation including Insurance Fraud, Public and Employers’ liability cases, Industrial disease and Highways Litigation. She has considerable experience of LVI claims, induced accidents, phantom passenger claims, fraud rings, exaggerated injury and credit hire claims. Victoria has had significant success in securing case dismissals and findings of fundamental dishonesty. She also has experience of health and safety litigation, including Military Induced Deafness, VWF and Mesothelioma.

Inquests

Victoria has represented various Interested Persons at Inquests including family members, local authorities and corporate bodies. She understands the sensitive nature of this work, as well as the non-adversarial role of the advocate. Of note, she has represented the Jockey Club in an Inquest involving the death of a groom on the gallops and Network Rail in an Inquest into the death of a rail worker hit by a train.

Notable Cases

CATSTROPHIC INJURY

• Represented a Claimant on liability and quantum in a case where she was trampled by a herd of cows leaving her with temporary paralysis and an inability to walk without the aid of sticks. The case settled at £500,000.
• Successfully negotiated a settlement at JSM on behalf of the Defendant insurer in a case pleaded above £600,000 involving life changing injury to a jockey’s leg following a riding accident.
• Successfully negotiated a settlement for a Defendant insurer at JSM involving a female Claimant who, following a kick by a horse, sustained a pelvic fracture and incontinence resulting in an inability to work.

INSURANCE FRAUD

• Represented a Defendant Insurer in a 3-day trial involving bogus passenger claims. Secured the dismissal of all passenger claims and the Claimant driver.
• Succeeded on behalf of a Defendant Insurer in securing a discontinuance after day one of trial spent cross examining Claimant claiming large hire claim.
• Succeeded against a Claimant fraudulently claiming loss of earnings and extensive PSLA award. The case involved detailed analysis of the law around the use and disclosure of surveillance evidence.

EQUINE/ANIMALS ACT 1971

Horses

• Advised a Defendant in a case involving barbed wire fencing on private land which became tangled up in horse’s legs causing horse to rear, resulting in significant personal injury to Claimant rider. Case involved consideration of trespass, negligence, and character of horse under Animals Act 1971.
• Successfully defended a race trainer at trial in a case where the employee Claimant was kicked in the chest by a gelding in a Horse Walker. Liability involved the consideration of defences under the Animals Act 1971 and negligence.
• Secured the dismissal of a claim wherein the Claimant was injured after falling from the Defendant’s horse whilst trialling it with a view to purchase. This high value quantum case involved the consideration of expert evidence on equine behaviour and negligence, in particular extensive argument centred on the use of language in advert for a horse.

Dogs

• Secured dismissal of a claim brought by a Claimant who suffered a broken leg after the Defendant’s labrador ran into her at speed. Issues involved the consideration of strict liability under the Animals Act 1971 and whether the Defendant had been negligent in entrusting their dog to a dogwalker.
• Advised a Claimant cleaner, who was bitten in the face by employer’s Border Collie as she went to release it from a fence. The case involved the consideration of Voluntary Assumption of Risk under the Animals Act 1971.
• Acted for the Defendant Rottweiler Rescue Home in a case involving a Claimant who was bitten by one of two Rottweilers in a van when she placed her hand up to window. The case involved consideration of the Animals Act 1971 defences and negligence.

Cows

• Advised a Claimant who was temporarily paralysed and permanently damaged following injuries sustained from a stampede of cows who were protecting calves on a public right of way. The case involved the consideration of negligence and strict liability under the Animals Act 1971, where a farmer had allowed the herd to remain in the field through which there was a public right of way.
• Successfully negotiated a settlement for a Claimant who was kicked in the head when employed as a milk inspector during a sample collection. The liability issues involved consideration of layout of parlour and behaviour of Cows in a herd under the Animals Act 1971.
• Advised a farmer of their liability position on a herd of cows/bull in a field, who charged at walkers on a public right of way in estate land.

Appointments

Judicial Panel for British Equestrian Federation

Articles

• “No One size fits all approach in equine cases” – an analysis of the case of Ford v Seymour Williams [2021] and Shoultz v Ball [2022] and what they mean for the industry.
• Victoria provides seminars on all aspects of the Animals Act 1971, expert evidence, and recently the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 in light of the XL Bully litigation.

Associations

MIB Panel

Personal Injury Bar Association

Education

BA (Hons) French & Spanish, Emmanuel College, Cambridge

Post Graduate Diploma in Law, Nottingham Trent Law School

Awards

Diplock Scholar, Middle Temple

Pegasus Scholar, Middle Temple

Prescribed Information

Miss Victoria Rigby is a practising barrister, who is regulated by the Bar Standards Board. Details of information held by the BSB about Miss Victoria Rigby can be found here.

Miss Victoria Rigby’s clerks will happily provide no obligation quotations for all legal services that she provides. Their contact details can be found here. It is most common for Miss Victoria Rigby to undertake Court work for a fixed fee and brief fee plus refresher days. For advisory work, paperwork and conferences it is most commonly charged at an hourly rate although fixed fees are available. Conditional Fee Agreements and Damages Based Agreements will be considered in cases with favourable prospects of success. Miss Victoria Rigby will typically return paperwork within 14-21 days, however professional commitments, complexity and volume of documentation can affect these approximate timescales.