AHA officially came into being. The final years of IAHA prior to the AHA merger were embroiled in controversy. Controversy of Michael Brown After considerable discussion over the years over how to improve the quality of judges and judging, IAHA appointed Michael Brown as its first Judges and Stewards Commissioner. He served from 1989 until 2001. Brown attempted to crack down on members of the association for rule violations, and was particularly noted for the prosecution of one prominent trainer, who was also a licensed judge, for having "plastic surgery" and other artificial enhancements performed on the horses in his care, including tattooing and liposuction. Some members accused Brown of practicing favoritism by prosecuting some members and not others. But while the individual in question was suspended for five years and several horses he had shown disqualified for assorted championships, this person filed suit against the organization, along with several other individuals who owned horses associated with him. Some of these large lawsuits were against the association and others named Brown personally. IAHA successfully defended the lawsuit brought by the trainer, though accumulated crippling legal fees in doing so. On the advice of counsel and their insurer, IAHA settled the remaining cases. Brown volunteered to resign after controversy about his fundraising methods for defending against the lawsuits and his creation of a personal legal defense fund. After leaving IAHA, Brown became the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), during the Presidency of George W. Bush, and was once again a target of controversy in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. See also Arabian horse United States Equestrian Federation References and footnotes interview with IAHA Secretary Gary Dearth about Brown Karl Hart article at awhitehorse.com (cached) External links Arabian Horse Association (AHA) Equestrian organizations Horse breed registries Arabian and part-Arabian horses