By: Jordan Guancione
When William Shatner’s divorce hit headlines in 2020, one line item stole the show: the Star Trek actor did not just walk away with two of the four horses he shared with his ex-wife; he received “all horse semen” the couple had used for breeding, plus the equipment used to collect it.[1] It made for an easy punchline, but left an unresolved question: How should divorce courts value unborn racehorses?
Kentucky’s marital property division framework under KRS 403.190, known as equitable distribution, was built around assets with a clear and ascertainable value such as real estate, financial accounts, and personal property.[2] It is unlikely that the Kentucky General Assembly, in drafting KRS 403.190, anticipated assets such as unborn racehorses and future syndicate shares. Yet as Kentucky’s equine industry continues to generate valuable breeding and racing interests,[3]courts may increasingly encounter these kinds of issues.
Equitable distribution of marital property in Kentucky follows a three-step process: classifying property as marital or separate, returning each spouse’s separate property to the respective owner, and dividing the remaining marital property equitably.[4] In practice, living horses are typically treated as any other property: if you owned the horse before the marriage, it is separate property; if you bought the horse after the marriage, it is marital property.[5] Once a horse is classified as marital property, courts must determine the horse’s value. Attorneys note that a horse’s market value depends heavily on its background (a backyard companion is worth far less than one with a high-profile racing or performance record), which is why courts typically rely on a certified equine appraisal to set an objective dollar figure before dividing the asset.[6] If the parties cannot reach an agreement, the court can order the horse sold and the profits split.[7] This framework is well-suited for a horse that already exists, but becomes more complicated once the horse in question has not yet been born. Unborn horses have no racing record, no performance history, and no characteristics to appraise.[8]
Courts are not entirely without a framework for valuing something that does not yet have a fixed worth.[9]Divorce courts around the country have long grappled with whether unvested pension benefits and unexercised stock options count as marital property subject to division, or whether they are too speculative to qualify as property.[10] In Fisher v. Fisher, the court discussed three possible ways to divide unvested stock options.[11] The first approach is “deferred distribution,” where the court waits until the options can be exercised to distribute them.[12] The second approach is the “immediate offset” method, where the court calculates the present value of the options and distributes it amongst the parties equitably, with one spouse receiving the options and the other receiving the equivalent in marital property.[13] The third approach is to divide the options themselves between the spouses, with both parties sharing their value in proper proportions.[14]
Applied to horses, each approach is slightly imperfect. Deferred distribution fits an unborn racehorse well in theory, since its future earnings cannot be assessed until it exists, yet it can keep divorced parties financially tied long after the marriage has ended. Dividing the asset is impossible as, unlike a stock option, a horse cannot be physically divided. This leaves the immediate offset method, though speculative, as the most practical approach. Under this method, the court determines the asset’s present value, awards the asset to one spouse, and offsets the other spouse’s share by awarding other marital property of equivalent value,[15] provided that courts have a reliable way to calculate that present value.[16] In practice, this would mean a certified equine appraiser valuing the unborn horse much like an appraiser would value a business,[17] with the court then awarding the horse to the spouse best suited to care for or race it, while the other spouse receives compensation, other property, or a larger share of a different marital asset in exchange.[18]Although this appraisal would necessarily involve some uncertainty, any imprecision in valuation is no different from what courts already account for when dividing stock options or businesses: a speculative valuation that relies on projected changes over time.[19]
As the center of the Thoroughbred industry,[20] Kentucky is particularly likely to face the question of how to value unborn racehorses, and it should not have to improvise. Courts have the framework already in place: the same immediate offset method considered in cases involving stock options could offer a workable approach for a racehorse, provided courts are willing to rely on equine appraisals in the same way they already rely on accountants and business valuators for other marital assets. Until Kentucky family courts embrace this approach, dividing an unborn racehorse in divorce court remains a bit like betting on a horse that has not yet signed up for the race.
[1] Jodi Guglielmi, William Shatner Will Get ‘Horse Semen’ for Animal Breeding in Divorce Settlement, People (Mar. 4, 2020), https://people.com/tv/william-shatner-to-get-horse-semen-divorce-settlement/ [https://perma.cc/WHM5-4FPK].
[2] See Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 403.190 (West 2026).
[3] About the Thoroughbred Industry, Three Chimneys, https://www.threechimneys.com/about-the-thoroughbred-industry/[https://perma.cc/WM5S-YCEY].
[4] Antonio G. Jimenez, Community Property vs. Equitable Property Distribution in Kentucky (2026 Guide), Divorce.law (July 11, 2026), https://divorce.law/guides/community-property-vs-equitable-distribution/kentucky/ [https://perma.cc/DZD4-89KU].
[5] Kristen Kovatch, Equine Law: Horses & Divorce, HORSE NATION (Mar. 30, 2016), https://www.horsenation.com/2016/03/30/equine-law-horses-divorce/ [https://perma.cc/6KYS-EW4P].
[6] Pat Raia, Horses and Divorces: Deciding Who Gets Custody, Horse Illustrated Magazine (Jan. 27, 2022), https://www.horseillustrated.com/horse-ownership-during-divorce/ [https://perma.cc/UK8K-92Y9].
[7] Id.
[8] See Leigh J. Maynard & Kelly M. Stoeppe, Hedonic Price Analysis of Thoroughbred Broodmares in Foal, 25 J. Agribusiness 181, 183 (2007) (discussing individual factors that can indicate an unborn horse’s value, including the characteristics of the mare, the performance of the previous foals, and the characteristics of the sire).
[9] See Laing v. Laing, 741 P.2d 649 (Alaska 1987); See Fisher v. Fisher, 769 A.2d 1165 (Pa. 2001).
[10] Laing, 741 P.2d at 655; Fisher, 769 A.2d at 1167-72.
[11] Fisher, 769 A.2d at 1169.
[12] Id.
[13] Id.
[14] Id.
[15] Hunsinger v. Hunsinger, 554 A.2d 89, 92-93 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1989).
[16] Maynard & Stoeppe, supra note 8.
[17] Although appraising an unborn racehorse involves some speculation, the valuation can be informed by observable market data (see id.). Unvested stock options, however, may lack comparable data to establish their present value, making the immediate offset method more difficult to apply
[18] See Hunsinger, supra note 14, at 93.
[19] See Gaskill v. Robbins, 282 S.W.3d 306, 311 (Ky. 2009).
[20] Holly Wiemers, Kentucky Equine Survey Reveals Resilience of State's Equine Industry, Univ. Ky. Martin-Gatton Coll. of Agric., Food & Env’t (July 12, 2023), https://news.mgcafe.uky.edu/article/kentucky-equine-survey-reveals-resilience-states-equine-industry[https://perma.cc/CX7J-T6JU] (stating that as of 2022, the total value of equine and equine-related assets in Kentucky was $27.7 billion); About the Thoroughbred Industry, supra note 3 (noting that “the state of Kentucky ranked first among North American states with 203 stallions breeding 16,764 mares in 2021. This helps to create over 24,000 jobs and $832 million in direct state revenue from the breeding and racing industry.”).