Sheamus Mills Bloodstock

At Echuca

Leading trainer Ciaron Maher has vowed to "vigorously" fight a $20 million lawsuit filed against him in the Queensland Supreme Court on Monday by a man claiming to be the real owner of suspended star mare Azkadellia.

William Edward Duffy is seeking an estimated $8.5 million in lost winnings over the three years that the horse has been banned from racing and a further $11.5 million in damages for a breach of agreement. As part of the claim, he has accused Maher of being the mastermind behind the long-running ownership deception.

Azkadellia was originally suspended because of suspicions over her true ownership. At the time she was said to be owned by Arabella Foster, niece of convicted con man Peter Foster. Duffy has alleged he bought the mare but raced her under the name of Ben Connolly, who was trainer Ciaron Maher's former racing manager.

But Maher, who was suspended and fined in 2017 for conduct prejudicial to racing's image over his role in the scandal, says he has not yet been served the writ and will "vigorously" fight the "false civil claims".

Documents seen by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald show that Azkadellia is owned by a trust, which is owned by another trust, of which Duffy is the sole beneficiary. The trust has owned Azkadellia and four other horses since September 2015.

Matthew Drain, chief operating officer of Ciaron Maher Racing, said Maher would defend himself against all claims.

"We will be vigorously fighting the false civil claims made against us today in the Brisbane Supreme Court," Drain said.

"I would like to say they have not been served on anyone nor have they been issued by a law firm.

"Racing Victoria dealt with the matter surrounding Azkadellia's ownership two years ago. Ciaron served his six-month ban and when he returned, put in place a management structure so he could concentrate on what he does best, training winning horses."

In the statement of claim filed on Monday morning, seen by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Duffy claims: "The second defendant [Maher] advised the second plaintiff [Duffy] to put the horses in a trust under the control of Ben Connolly, a friend of the second defendant and not to put the horses in his own name.

"Despite knowing the true circumstances of the ownership of the horses and that they were owned by the second plaintiff, the second defendant claimed to have no knowledge of the ownership of the horses in seeking to minimise his own exposure to any charges by the Racing Appeals and Disciplinary Board.

"As a result of the allegations and ensuing investigation, the horses were suspended from racing."

Azkadellia was sold by lawyer John Gdanski on behalf of Maher at an Echuca sale yard auction last Thursday for $615,000 – below her insured price of $1 million – under the Agistment Act. Duffy claimed to have no knowledge of the sale.

Under the Agistment Act (also known as the Livestock Act), a landowner may recoup money owed to them by an owner who has not paid fees for keeping their horse on that land.

Maher, who was seeking $471,360 in unpaid agistment costs and legal fees by the trust through VCAT in a separate legal proceeding, had been looking after Azkadellia since her suspension.

Drain said the two parties had attempted to come to an agreement but Maher was left with no choice but to sell the horses last Thursday.

"We negotiated in good faith on two occasions with Mr [Grant] Madgwick, the trustee in bankruptcy, of some kind of entity to exchange the horses in question for the costs we incurred looking after the horses," he said.

"We informed Mr Madgwick of the impending sale and gave them a third opportunity to pay the debt for the horses. The horses were then sold legally under the Livestock Act.

"We are deeply disappointed these malicious claims have been made against Ciaron. But we won't let it affect our preparation for the spring racing carnival or the day to day operation of our stables.

Drain said their "number one priority remains the horses we train and all the owners we represent".

Duffy is also suing auctioneer Andrew Wilson and bloodstock agent Sheamus Mills, who bought the mare on behalf of an undisclosed buyer, for $1.5 million, claiming the auction was conducted without due diligence into the ownership bona fides.

Wilson said he had not received notice of the writ. He has not filed a defence. Mills and Racing Victoria have been contacted for comment.

Duffy claims the horse should not have been sold without his consent, because he has one of five personal property security registers, which prevent the horse from being sold without the secured parties' consent.

According to the Personal Properties Security Act, "the secured party may take possession of the livestock or proceeds wherever it is located".

Duffy owes money to the other four parties who have securities on Azkadellia. Foster is not one of them.

Maher's decision to sell the horse at Echuca pre-empted the pending arbitration at VCAT where Ciaron Maher Racing and the trust were at loggerheads over the debt. That case was adjourned until October 19.

Duffy has admitted to withholding payment from Maher but says he has been denied access to the horse, one of the clauses in the agreement between Ciaron Maher Racing and the trust.

As part of the $20 million lawsuit, Duffy is also seeking $80,000 in damages following the death of broodmare Little Bubulu, alleging that Maher failed to take reasonable care of the horse, which led to her being euthanised on March 24, 2017. The defendants to the case are expected to file defences in the coming weeks.

Sydney Morning Herald

I assume Racing Victorian Stewards are re-looking at this ?

coIncidence that all this comes out right at the end of footy season, when the attention turns to the racing?
Looks and sounds dodgy to me

Leading trainer Ciaron Maher has commented publicly for the first time since news emerged of a $20 million lawsuit being filed against him in the Queensland Supreme Court on Monday.

William Edward Duffy claims to be the owner of Azkadellia and has accused Maher of being the central figure in the deception of the ownership of the horse.

Maher made his comments on Tuesday night when attending the launch of the Cox Plate Carnival at QT Rooftop in Melbourne's CBD.

"It's sort of been dragging on for a while and it's in the hands of the lawyers, I'm sure it'll all be sorted out quickly," Maher said.

Azkadellia was put through an Echuca horse auction last Thursday with a reserve price of $300,000 and was sold for $615,000.

In 2017, the Racing Appeals and Disciplinary Board heard that convicted criminal Peter Foster was the 'mastermind' behind an arrangement with Maher's former racing manager Ben Connolly to deceive stewards over the true ownership of Azkadellia, Mr Simples, Loveable Rogue, Hart and Little Bubulu.

Maher was suspended for six months and fined $75,000 for his involvement in the matter while Connolly was disqualified until January 2020.

djebel wrote: I assume Racing Victorian Stewards are re-looking at this ? Did this all come out in the original enquiry ? <span style=": rgb251, 251, 253;">In the statement of claim filed on Monday morning, seen by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Duffy claims: "The second defendant [Maher] advised the second plaintiff [Duffy] to put the horses in a trust under the control of Ben Connolly, a friend of the second defendant and not to put the horses in his own name.</span>

It definitely should be totally looked at again. And with Connoly’s suspension nearly finished, will he be doing a Liam Prior?

Azkadellia in pre-training ahead of potential return to racing

The new owner of suspended mare Azkadellia will decide next week whether he wants to apply for the eight-year-old to resume her racing career following a three-and-a-half year hiatus.

The group 1 winner, who was suspended from racing in October 2016 after it was determined that convicted conman Peter Foster still had an interest in her ownership, is currently at a pre-training facility in Sydney, with the new owner – who wishes to remain anonymous for now – seeking opinions from two different trainers as to whether Azkadellia is sound enough to return to the track.

Racing authorities in both NSW and Victoria have told The Age the embargo would be lifted if her ownership bonafides could be proven.

"We would want some pretty solid evidence as to who owns her before we allow her to race," Racing NSW chief executive Peter V'landys told The Age.

"I have no contact with the man [Peter Foster] or his representatives. I don't know him, I don't want to know him.

"The first point is to see if she can race. If she can race then I'll start talking to the state racing bodies or the relevant ones to see if she can."

Sources familiar with the situation told The Age that former trainer Ciaron Maher had kept the mare in terrific condition in the hope of her one day resuming her racing career.

Azkadellia was sold at an Echuca auction in late September for $615,000 to a client of agent Sheamus Mills, but that sale fell through, with representatives of Ciaron Maher Racing contacting the current owner about a week later to seek his interest.

sounds very dodgy to me

That’s one highly improbable story; must think the stewards came down in the last shower

The owner, who has never owned a racehorse or broodmare before, was aware up to three months before the Echuca auction that Azkadellia would be for sale and said he had done his research before deciding to bid on the mare at Echuca. He was an unsuccessful bidder on the day.