Thomas A. “Tad” Davis, helped found American Horse Council, dies at 84

Thomas A. “Tad” Davis, an influential horse-racing lobbyist and lawyer, died on Dec. 28 of complications related to Parkinson’s Disease at his home in Alexandria, Va., according to the lobbying organization he helped found, the American Horse Council. Davis was 84.

Davis, who maintained a practice in Washington, D.C., for 50 years, was instrumental in the passage of the 1978 Interstate Horseracing Act, which served as the legal foundation for interstate simulcasting and provided an exception for racing enjoyed by no other sport at the time. Davis also lobbied for tax advantages for horse ownership, and he represented the AHC for 50 years.

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Aside from his lobbying career, Davis – who had an extensive background in tax law – assisted horse owners and breeders in the formation of both racing and breeding syndicates, and he was often hired by horse owners who were facing audits of their operations.

“He was really the dean of equine attorneys,” said Jay Hickey, the longtime president of the AHC who retired in 2016 after 23 years at the organization. “He loved the horse industry and the people in it. Beyond all his legislative achievements, he was widely admired for his honesty, integrity, and loyalty to his friends and his fun-loving spirit.”

Davis was born in Birmingham, Ala., and grew up in Jacksonville, Fla. After graduating from the University of Florida and receiving his Master of Laws in taxation from Georgetown University, he served with the US Army in Washington D.C. as a strategic defense officer with the Defense Intelligence Agency. He then served as an attorney in the Chief Counsel’s Office for the Internal Revenue Service.

Davis co-founded the law firm Davis & Harman in 1986, where he specialized in taxation issues.

Davis is survived by his wife, Jerri, and two children, Denra and Reilly.

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