You just opened a letter written by a lawyer, and it accuses you of malpractice. The lawyer was hired by one of your customers named Bill. 

Three weeks ago Bill hired you to  shoe his horse, and he told you the horse had just been diagnosed with navicular disease. You carefully trimmed and shod the horse in a manner that Bill’s veterinarian recommended. Now, the lawyer accuses you of being negligent in your work and claims that you made Bill’s horse permanently lame.

Bill wants thousands of dollars from you, and his lawyer threatens that if you do not pay up soon, he will sue you. 

What do you do?

Farrier malpractice lawsuits are not common. Because we live in a litigious society, however, all farriers would be wise to beware — and aware — of the law.

Malpractice Or Professional Negligence?

Generally speaking, the law imposes a duty on professionals, such as farriers, to use reasonable skill, diligence and attention as may ordinarily be expected of a careful and skillful person in the same profession. If a shoeing client believes you have fallen short of this standard, he or she might have grounds to bring a legal action against you for professional negligence or malpractice.Farrier malpractice lawsuits are filed with far less frequency than lawsuits against health professionals who serve humans. The reasons for this are mainly economic: 

• In most states, those who bring lawsuits involving professional malpractice in animal settings stand to win back far less than they…