Retired racehorses' group sues donor's rep in NYC
January 5, 2012NEW YORK (AP) - A noted charity that cares for retired racehorses has sued a representative for its biggest benefactor amid a feud over finances and the horses' well-being.
The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation filed a defamation lawsuit Thursday against New York City lawyer Frederick Terry, an executor of the estate of philanthropist Paul Mellon.
A $7 million endowment from the estate provides about 12 percent of the Lexington, Ky.-based thoroughbred foundation's annual budget.
Terry's assistant said he was out of his office Thursday.
The estate expressed concern last year about the horses' care and the foundation's management. The lawsuit says Terry slandered the foundation by telling auditors and the New York attorney general's office that the Mellon endowment was being misused.
The foundation says it has a legal opinion to the contrary.