A South African horse owner has been ordered to pay €218,000 in fees owed to an investment branch of John Magnier’s Coolmore and to David Stack’s Coolagown Bloodstock Ltd for the care of his animals.

The High Court case was taken by Linley Investments Ltd, trading as Coolmore Castlehyde and Associated Stud Farms and by Coolagown Blockstock Ltd against qualified lawyer Nigel Riley.

At the High Court on Thursday, Judge Peter Charleton made the awards of €148,000 to Coolagown and €70,000 to Coolmore for the care and stud fees owed.

The judge said the relationship with Coolagown and Riley started in 2013 and the outstanding fees sought went back to 2018 for keeping mares.

“The defence filed was more than uninformative; stating a denial of everything,” said the judge, who said a similar defence was made by Riley in the Coolmore claim.

In June 2021, Riley wrote a letter repudiating the Coolagown agreement at a time when Stack was “forcefully” seeking payment of his boarding fees, which then amounted to €148,000.

After proceedings were issued by Stack in April 2022, the plaintiff made an attempt “in good faith” to resolve some of the issue on the basis of transferring the ownership of the animals to him, which would reduce the fees sought, said the judge.

“David Stack alleges a simple agreement; he kept mares for Nigel Riley, arranged for them to be covered and for this service he was to be paid,” the judge wrote.

“That simple agreement is denied by Nigel Riley. That does not help his [Riley’s] case. As to what basis Nigel Riley’s horses were at Coolagown stud farm in the care of David Stack was not fully explained by Nigel Riley,” the judge noted.

The judge said that there had to be some kind of contract for Riley’s horses, some being in Ireland from 2013 and getting cared for. He said Stack’s evidence had been “calm and trustworthy” regarding payments by Riley in 2018 and 2019, which was proof of an underlying contract, albeit one not in writing.

Riley claimed that he had cleared fees based on a “reasonable” rate of €10 a day and that from November 2019 a new agreement was put in place whereby Stack would keep his horses for free but profits from foal sales would be shared evenly and the charges written off.

Charleton described the posited €10-a-day figure as an “unbelievable” low rate.

The judge said the court did not accept anything contrary to the evidence of Stack and that invoices went from Ireland to South Africa in 2018 and 2019, indicating the contract arrangement asserted by Stack.

“It is more than surprising, and is obstructive of a path towards truth, that Riley should deny that arrangement,” Charleton said.

The judge then made an order of €148,000 in favour of Coolagown.

A similar denial argument was made by Riley against Coolmore, where five mares were covered when Stack was acting as Riley’s agent in November 2017.

Riley asserted that Stack was not his agent and that the housing of his mares in Coolmore was “nothing to do with him” despite evidence to the contrary.

“He [Stack] clearly was Mr Riley’s agent and the evidence of [Coolmore staff] William Mackesy and Edward FitzPatrick in that regard is accepted,” the judge said.

The court accepted Coolmore evidence that FitzPatrick first met Riley with Stack in November 2017 when Stack was acting as agent.

“What was he [Stack] doing there, if not in the capacity of agent? Certainly, they were not merely buddies. At all times the cover of mares was arranged as Mr Riley’s responsibility through his agent, in that regard, Mr Stack,” the judge said.

The judge then decreed that Riley pay Coolmore €70,000 for its outstanding fees.

Riley indicated his intention to appeal the judgments.