Brenda Walker

The appellant, a thoroughbred owner and trainer, appealed the decision of the Ontario Racing Industry Board of Appeal, which had disallowed his appeal of the Stewards' decision not to disqualify a horse for alleged interference during a race.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard evidence from several individuals and dismissed the appeal, with reasons provided orally on the record.

The appellant, a standardbred trainer, appealed rulings suspending his license for six months and imposing fines for failing to comply with death registry reporting requirements and failing to have a written contract with owners.

The Commission found the appellant failed to report the death of a racehorse and transport it for a post-mortem.

The appeal was allowed in part; the six-month suspension and the $2,000 fine for the contract violation were upheld, but the $5,000 fine for the death registry violations was reduced to $2,500 due to the appellant's recent licensing and modest earnings.

The appellant, a standardbred driver/owner/trainer, appealed decisions of the Executive Director and Director of Racing finding him liable for rule violations, suspending his licence for six months, and fining him $7,000.

The Ontario Racing Commission dismissed the appeal on liability but allowed the appeal on penalty, reducing the licence suspension to two months while maintaining the $7,000 fine.

The applicant, a licensed standardbred trainer, sought to have the Ontario Racing Commission review and rescind a trespass notice issued by the respondent racetrack operator, which excluded him from racing at its facilities following an equine drug violation.

The Commission first determined it had jurisdiction to review the exercise of the racetrack's private property rights where the issue primarily involved horse racing and the public interest.

On the merits, the Commission found that the racetrack's decision to exclude the trainer was a reasonable exercise of its property rights aimed at protecting the integrity of its racing product and business interests.

The Commission declined to modify the trespass notice and dismissed the trainer's request for reinstatement.

The appellant, a veterinarian, appealed a decision of the Executive Director suspending him for two years and fining him $20,000 for violations of the Rules of Standardbred Racing.

At the commencement of the appeal hearing, the appellant brought motions requesting that the Commission Chair and another Commissioner recuse themselves from the panel.

The panel granted the motion for the Chair to recuse herself, dismissed the motion regarding the other Commissioner, and ordered that the hearing be rescheduled with the Vice Chair presiding.

The applicant, a standardbred licensee, appealed a ruling of the Ontario Racing Commission.

The Commission ordered that the applicant may be licensed subject to strict conditions, including a maximum 18-month term, quarterly employment reports, random urine testing, and mandatory participation in a substance abuse program.

Any breach of the conditions would result in immediate revocation of the licence.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard applications for 2004 race dates from Western Fair, Hiawatha Horse Park, Clinton Raceway, and Woodstock Raceway.

The Ontario Harness Horse Association (OHHA) requested that the Commission order the tracks to conduct additional race dates.

The Commission approved the applications conditionally, requiring the tracks to file amended applications by January 15, 2004, adding dates to their calendars, noting that the tracks had failed to sufficiently build on the opportunity presented by the slots program to enhance live racing.

The appellant, a standardbred owner and trainer, appealed a 30-day suspension and $1,000 fine for violating Rules 10.01(a) and (b) of the Rules of Standardbred Racing by possessing a hypodermic needle and injectables on the backstretch.

The Ontario Racing Commission dismissed the appeal, preferring the evidence of the security officer who witnessed the incident over the appellant's denials.

The Commission affirmed the penalty.

Thoroughbred owners appealed the decision of the Ontario Racing Industry Board of Appeal, which upheld the Stewards' decision to disqualify their horse from 2nd position and place it 7th for interference during a race at Woodbine Racetrack.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard evidence from several witnesses and dismissed the appeal.

The reasons for the decision were delivered orally and form part of the hearing transcript.

The appellant, a standardbred owner/driver/trainer, appealed a $600 fine imposed for failing to fulfill his driving engagements in six races.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard the appeal and granted it, with reasons forming part of the hearing transcript.

Standardbred owner Peter Haime appealed the decision of the Ontario Racing Industry Board of Appeal which placed BACKNTHESADDLEAPAN 1st and GOLFMAN 2nd in a race at Mohawk Raceway.

The Ontario Racing Commission dismissed the appeal and confirmed the placing of the horses.

A thoroughbred jockey appealed a Stewards' Ruling fining him $500 for failing to persevere with his mount during a race, in violation of Rule 9.01 of the Rules of Thoroughbred Racing.

Following a hearing where evidence was presented by the jockey and another witness, the Ontario Racing Commission granted the appeal.

The reasons for the decision were delivered orally and form part of the hearing transcript.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard applications for 2004 live and intertrack race dates from Rideau Carleton Raceway and Hiawatha Horse Park.

The Ontario Harness Horse Association opposed Rideau Carleton's application, arguing that the lack of winter racing negatively impacted horsemen and the local economy.

The majority of the Commission approved Rideau Carleton's application for 131 live race dates, finding no convincing evidence that winter racing would have a positive economic impact on the track or handle.

A dissenting opinion argued that the application should be rejected to encourage more live racing opportunities, consistent with the goals of the slots program.

A thoroughbred trainer appealed a stewards' ruling fining him $1,000 for being disrespectful and threatening a racing official.

At the hearing, the trainer admitted to being disrespectful and agreed the $1,000 fine was appropriate, but contested the finding that he had threatened the official.

The Commission dismissed the appeal, finding the sole remaining issue to be substantially hypothetical and moot, as a finding on the threat would have no practical effect on the penalty or outcome.

The appellant, a standardbred owner, driver, and trainer, appealed a decision of the Ontario Racing Industry Board of Appeal that upheld a three-day driving suspension for violating Rule 22.05(g)(i) of the Rules of Standardbred Racing.

After hearing evidence from multiple witnesses, the Ontario Racing Commission dismissed the appeal.

The reasons for the decision were delivered orally and form part of the hearing transcript.

The Ontario Racing Commission convened to hear applications for 2004 live and intertrack race dates from various racetracks.

The Commission approved the requested dates for Woodbine, Fort Erie, Picov Downs, Mohawk, Sudbury Downs, Kawartha Downs, Quinte Exhibition, Flamboro Downs, Georgian Downs, Grand River, Hanover, Windsor, and Dresden.

Applications for Hiawatha, Clinton, Woodstock, Western Fair, and Rideau Carleton were deferred pending further submissions and review of materials filed by the Ontario Harness Horse Association.

A standardbred veterinarian appealed a 15-day suspension for failing to report the death of a racehorse within two days, as required by the death registry provisions of the Rules of Standardbred Racing.

The Commission found that the veterinarian did not learn of the horse's death until five days after it occurred.

Applying the doctrine of strict construction to the regulatory provision, the Commission concluded it was impossible for the veterinarian to comply with the rule's temporal limits based on his actual knowledge.

The appeal was granted and the suspension quashed, though the Commission strongly criticized the veterinarian's conduct and failure to report the death once he became aware of it.

The appellant, a standardbred owner and trainer, appealed a Judges' decision that the horses in a race at Woodstock Raceway were given a fair start.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard testimony and dismissed the appeal, providing oral reasons for its decision.

The appellant, a standardbred owner, driver, and trainer, appealed a ruling of the Ontario Racing Industry Board of Appeal that placed his horse second and another horse first in a race.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard testimony from the judge, the appellant, and the driver and trainer of the other horse.

The Commission granted the appeal and restored the original order of finish, placing the appellant's horse first.

The appellant appealed a Judges' decision to place his horse from 1st to 3rd position under Rule 22.27(c) of the Rules of Standardbred Racing.

The Ontario Racing Commission heard testimony and dismissed the appeal, providing oral reasons.