Warmblood studbook body alleges competition law breaches
Among other things, WSI maintains that HSI continues to prevent it from affiliating to the organisation, despite repeated requests dating from 2013. Photograph: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images
Court filings show that WSI is suing Horse Sport Ireland , the Irish Horse Board and the Irish Shows Association, along with individuals involved those organisations, claiming among other things, that they abused dominant positions in different markets, a breach of competition law, to its disadvantage.
Studbook operators earn income from registration fees paid by breeders and by issuing passports for horses, required by EU regulations and needed to identify them so they can take part in competitions and events. However, that constitution also requires that forum members must be HSI affiliate representatives. As WSI is not affiliated to HSI, it cannot become a member of the advisory forum, the statement of claim argues.
Up to 2022, HSI prevented Irish warmbloods from taking part in the Studbook Series showjumping and eventing competitions, essential to the development of the plaintiff’s business. WSI is seeking damages for this.HSI opened those competitions to Irish warmbloods in a series of reforms that followed an EU Commission Competition Directorate investigation prompted by a complaint from Studbook Development Ireland Ltd in 2018.
In a separate action, Studbook Development Ireland maintains that the Irish Shows Association is the dominant player in agricultural shows that include equine competitions, which WSI argues are “indispensable” to organisations that manage studbooks.
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