Catching sight on television this week of the Cheltenham Festival in full flow, I was struck by the pictures of the race course thronged with cheerful punters, all happily placing their bets without any guarantee as to the outcome.
It made me think of the weddings I've attended, years later finding myself acting for either the bride or groom in their divorce. You don't have to be a betting person to know that the odds of a first marriage succeeding are only 66% and for second marriage even lower.
And in the equine world there are a multitude of husbands and wives running successful equine businesses together, but when they get divorced they face a very particular set of problems.
Firstly, the equestrian business has to be valued. Now you wouldn't ask an estate agent to value your horse anymore than you'd ask an equine valuer to tell you how much your house is worth, but often this is an area where people fail to engage an expert in order to "save money", sometimes with catastrophic results. I always tell my equine clients this is one area where it really is horses for courses.
Secondly, many co-owners of yards live together but aren't married. I was asked only last week by one woman in this position whether or not she was entitled to anything if she and her partner split up. In a word, no. Cohabitees have no rights to spousal maintenance, pensions or savings/policies that are in your partner's sole name. The only claim a cohabitee may have is in relation to real estate (your home, in other words). You can, however, get a Living Together Agreement drawn up to protect, for example, your share of a joint property, something I would strongly advise anyone in this or a similar situation.
In addition, one of the biggest hurdles equine and indeed many farming businesses face is the conundrum of having substantial assets but almost none of them being liquid. I have had clients worried sick that this means they'll have to sell their business and telling me they can see no way out of the situation. But in such cases, although the judge will have the final say, most courts are reluctant to force the selling of any business if that's what brings in the money. And it may well be that whoever wishes to buy the other party out is given a period of time to raise the necessary funds.
So if you're lucky enough to be going to Cheltenham this week or indeed the next time you're enjoying a glass of champagne at the races, remember that sometimes the enviable world of glossy horse flesh has its own, very particular set of hurdles to overcome.