New York Racing Association

In an attempt to rein in an already cumbersome litigation process in the Bob Baffert vs. New York Racing Association (NYRA) lawsuit, the federal judge in charge of the case ordered Tuesday that the Hall of Fame trainer will be allowed to amend his initial June 14 civil complaint that alleged NYRA violated his constitutional right to due process by trying to bar him over his history of equine medication violations. Baffert's desire to amend his complaint stems from NYRA summoning him to a hearing back in September to adjudicate...

The New York Racing Association has released the 2021-22 Aqueduct winter stakes schedule, which includes 46 stakes races on offer worth nearly $6 million in purses. The 56-day Aqueduct winter meet begins Thursday, Dec. 9 and runs through Sunday, Mar. 27. Live racing will generally be conducted Thursday through Sunday through the end of February with a holiday break set for Dec. 20-29 and the addition of a special Presidents' Day card Monday, Feb. 21. March will then feature a Friday-Sunday schedule of live racing through the conclusion of the...

Joi L. Garner has been named Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of the New York Racing Association, NYRA announced Wednesday. Garner succeeds Joe Lambert, who is retiring, and will assume her responsibilities on Oct. 15. Garner previously served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel at THINK450, the marketing and licensing subsidiary of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA). At THINK450, Garner was the lead negotiator in several of the NBPA's most significant licensing deals, including agreements with Take-Two Interactive (NBA2K), Fanatics and Dapper Labs. Garner was...

Both plaintiff Bob Baffert and defendant the New York Racing Association (NYRA) traded volleys of legal filings that were posted electronically just before 6 p.m. Tuesday. They all relate to Baffert's ongoing quest to fight NYRA's attempts to either banish him outright or to give him a hearing that would adjudicate the "detrimental conduct" charges NYRA has levied against Baffert over the repeated equine drug positives in his trainees. NYRA on Oct. 12 filed a memorandum of law in support of its earlier motion to dismiss Counts I, III, IV...

A Jan. 24, 2022, start date for the hearing process to determine whether the New York Racing Association (NYRA) can exclude trainer Bob Baffert from racing at its three tracks was mutually agreed upon by the two parties during a Monday videoconference. A NYRA spokesperson confirmed to TDN that the schedule was established during the Oct. 11 conference by hearing officer O. Peter Sherwood. Baffert must answer to a three-count complaint filed against him by NYRA in the form of a "statement of charges." Those three counts correspond to Baffert's...

Linda Rice took a legal swat at both the New York Racing Association (NYRA) and the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) with a court reply underscoring that her participation as a trainer (currently permitted because of a temporary injunction) poses no threat to anyone. This latest legal filing comes as Rice continues to try and get a three-year license revocation and $50,000 fine for "improper and corrupt conduct" overturned via the state's judicial system. The Sept. 29 memorandum of law filed by Rice's legal team in Schenectady County Supreme...

After a year lost to the COVID-19 pandemic, the FDNY Stair Climb returns to Belmont Park on Sunday, October 17. This year's 7th annual event is part of the nationwide 9/11 stair climb program that pays tribute to the FDNY firefighters who died more than 20 years ago on 9/11. The climb benefits the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF), which supports the families of fallen firefighters and the FDNY Counseling Service Unit. "Twenty years later, I still remember what trauma looked like etched on the faces of firefighters at the...

The New York Racing Association (NYRA) told a federal judge Wednesday that it shouldn't face "contempt of court" allegations initiated last week by trainer Bob Baffert because NYRA has been fully compliant with a July court order that--by NYRA's interpretation--should allow its scheduled hearing on Baffert's exclusion from its tracks to proceed. NYRA is already defending itself in a federal lawsuit initiated by the Hall of Fame trainer with the well-publicized history of equine drug positives over whether or not NYRA violated Baffert's constitutional rights by trying to ban him...

The New York Racing Association (NYRA) fired back in court Monday against Bob Baffert's attempt to collect $162,086 in legal fees and expenses from NYRA that have resulted from the Hall of Fame trainer's lawsuit against NYRA. Calling his request "premature" while claiming that the $450 to $975 hourly fees charged by his lawyers are "disproportionately high," NYRA also alleged that Baffert is attempting to twist a legal provision "intended to incentivize attorneys to represent individual civil rights plaintiffs that might otherwise be unrepresented" to his own financial benefit when...

Trainer Bob Baffert filed a motion Wednesday asking a federal judge to hold the New York Racing Association (NYRA) in civil contempt for trying to schedule a hearing under its newly created exclusionary procedures that could once again bar him from participating at NYRA's tracks. The basis for the contempt allegation is NYRA's "failure to comply with the terms of the Court's July 14, 2021, Memorandum & Order enjoining it from enforcing its unlawful suspension of Baffert from New York racetracks." According to a Sept. 22 filing by Baffert's legal...

A lawyer representing trainer Bob Baffert has notified the judge handling Baffert's legal dispute with the New York Racing Association that he intends to file a motion to hold NYRA in contempt and will also seek a stay that would prevent NYRA from taking any immediate action that could lead to Baffert being suspended. Those intentions were part of a letter sent Tuesday by Baffert attorney Craig Robertson to Judge Carol Bagley Amon, Senior United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New...

The Week In Review, by Bill Finley The Breeders' Cup announced Saturday that it had begun a review process to determine whether or not trainer Bob Baffert will be allowed to compete in this year's championship event. The outcome of that review is pending. "The Breeders' Cup Board has commenced a review process as to whether Bob Baffert will be permitted to participate in this year's Breeders' Cup World Championships," read a statement from the Breeders' Cup. "The process will include an opportunity for Mr. Baffert to present his case...