Hollendorfer seeks legal relief to run at Del Mar

Attorneys for the Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer and the state’s trainers’ organization are seeking an immediate court order that will prevent Del Mar Thoroughbred Club from denying the trainer the ability to enter horses in the track’s races, according to a complaint filed Monday in Superior Court of San Diego.

The complaint was filed after several weeks of communications between the attorneys and Del Mar’s management to resolve the dispute, according to the filing. It is the first legal step in an ongoing controversy revolving around Hollendorfer, who was first banned by management at Santa Anita Park in June after a fourth horse in his care suffered a fatal injury while racing or training at the track since its opening on Dec. 26. Del Mar later refused to issue stalls to the trainer, and, following that decision, refused to allow him to enter any horses at the track, which opened Wednesday.

The suit was filed on behalf of Hollendorfer and the California Thoroughbred Trainers, an organization representing horsemen in the state. While racetracks across the U.S. have issued bans to trainers in the past under rights generally held by private-property owners, the Hollendorfer suit is unusual because of an agreement the CTT has with Del Mar that contains provisions that seemingly grant the organization a right to dispute the exclusion of one of its members or any decision denying stalls to a trainer.

According to the court's public affairs office, a hearing into the complaint has been placed on the calendar for the Superior Court for Thursday morning, according to the court's clerk. Judge Ronald Frazier will preside. Requests for temporary restraining orders are typically expedited, though the court is not under any obligation to rule immediately.

According to the complaint, the agreement between Del Mar and CTT stipulates that “the agreement of CTT shall be a condition precedent to any execution of a decision by track to limit or eliminate applicant’s ability to participate in racing or training activities.” The complaint notes that the CTT has not agreed with Del Mar’s decision to ban Hollendorder, though it also acknowledges that Del Mar disputes the CTT’s interpretation of the exclusion provision.

Furthermore, the complaint states that Del Mar is required to grant Hollendorfer an arbitration hearing in its decision to deny stalls to the trainer, also due to language in the agreement, if the CTT has concerns about the decision. It seeks a ruling from the court requiring that Del Mar grant the arbitration hearing.

Darrell Vienna, a former trainer in California, is representing the CTT in the lawsuit.

Josh Rubinstein, the president of Del Mar, declined on Wednesday to comment on the complaint.

Hollendorfer, who has been granted stalls at Del Mar for 30 years, according to the complaint, has become a cause celebre in a national conversation that erupted after a spate of deaths at Santa Anita this year. Animal-rights activists have issued statements supporting the ban, while many horsemen suspect that the decision to blackball Hollendorfer, both at Santa Anita and Del Mar, was made out of political expediency instead of a genuine concern over his horsemanship.

Following the close of the Santa Anita meeting, Hollendorfer was granted stalls during the Los Alamitos meeting, but he has also transferred many of his horses to his former assistant Dan Ward, who was granted stalls at Del Mar. Ward had a total four starters entered on the Wednesday and Thursday cards at Del Mar.

The complaint also states that Del Mar officials attempted to convince the management of Los Alamitos to evict him from his stalls at the track during its recently concluded three-week meeting.

Del Mar’s “efforts to remove Hollendorfer’s horses from stalls located at [Los Alamitos] and/or denying him the opportunity to enter horses at or otherwise participate in this upcoming race meet – either as an owner or a trainer – constitute deprivations of material and significant occupational and property interests, without fair procedure or due process, that will cause him immediate and irreparable harm,” the complaint states.