A young girl who dislocated her elbow after falling from her own pony who was spooked during a lesson, has settled her case against an equestrian centre for €145,000.
It was claimed the girl's pony was too young to be in a group lesson and had not been properly assessed by the equestrian centre.
The claims were denied and the settlement was reached without admission of liability.
Leah Skye Keeling from Mount Rochford Rise, Balbriggan, Co Dublin, was 10 years old in October 2017 when she fell while taking a riding lesson on her recently bought three-year-old mare, Molly.
Senior Counsel Hugh Mohan said their expert witnesses would argue that a horse used for lessons should not be less than five years old.
It was claimed that during the lesson another rider rode up close to Molly and impacted her. As a result, the mare was spooked and took off at a gallop.
Despite her best efforts to remain on her pony, Leah fell off, the court was told.
It was claimed that in participating in the lesson, the girl relied on the expertise of the equestrian centre in riding and management of horses and had been allowed to take part in the lesson while riding a pony whose condition and temperament had not been assessed by the equestrian centre.
The pony, it was alleged, was not sufficiently mature for a group lesson.
The court heard that as a result of the fall the girl suffered an injury to her elbow which was at first treated conservatively but she later had to have surgery and her arm is not completely straight. She had returned to horse riding two or three times a week.
The claims were denied and Monksfield Equestrian, with registered offices at Killeek Lane, St Margaret's, Co Dublin, also denied the account of the accident as put forward by the plaintiff.
It further contended the occurrence of the accident was unforeseeable and said despite the exercise of all reasonable care, falls are an accepted and an inherent risk in the sport and it cannot not predict, prevent, anticipate or foresee ponies becoming spooked and falls occurring while riding.
Mr Justice O'Connor approved the settlement.
