For the last year, I have been a member of the Downtown Lawyers group here in New York City. It is comprised of attorneys who practice law in New York City in a myriad of practice areas including bankruptcy, estate planning, elder law, business law, personal injury, employment law, immigration, matrimonial law, tax law, landlord-tenant law, intellectual property, criminal law, …
Monday Links
I hope all my readers had a nice weekend. After a tough workout, I was able to catch-up on my NetNewsWire Google Reader feed yesterday over a warm cup of coffee. I thought the following posts were worth noting: 1. I have worked as a legal consultant for the Food and Agriculture Organization (“FAO”) of the United Nations in Rome. …
Role of Buyer’s Attorney in Real Estate Closing
I have had several real closings this week and was reminded this morning of this pamphlet from the New York State Bar Association (“NYSBA”) on the Attorney’s Role in Home Purchases. Most of us will purchase property at some point in our lives. The pamphlet properly describes the various responsibilities of the Buyer’s/Borrower’s attorney in real estate transactions including, but …
Next on the Bookshelf: Animal Factory
Animal Factory by David Kirby has been sitting on my Manhattan bookshelf for a few weeks. The weather is so nice in New York City now that I am yearning for some time in Central Park with a book. As the title suggests, the book is about “factory farming” and Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (“CAFO’s”). As I have noted previously …
Information on the Existing Voluntary National Animal Identification System
I know that it has been a while since the agriculture community has talked about the National Animal Identification System (“NAIS”). As most of my readers know, the program is managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (“APHIS”) and participation is currently voluntary. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) expressed concern over NAIS. In February …
Approaching Wedding Season: Is a Prenuptial Agreement Prudent for Your Agriculture Business?
For those of you who missed it, in this previous post last fall I discussed why I thought prenuptial (“prenups”) agreements were “romantic.” Last night, I came across this Fact Sheet by Chris Zoller and David Marrison from The Ohio State University Extension Office discussing prenuptial agreements for farms. The Fact Sheet properly states that “[f]arm and agriculture businesses often …
Family/Matrimonial Law Seminars for Mental Health Professionals
I will be hosting a family and matrimonial law seminar series for mental health professionals with Deborah Kaminetzky, Esq. (@CedarhurstLaw on Twitter). The following topics will be discussed: grounds for divorce and the new “no fault” divorce law, child support, spousal maintenance, child custody/visitation, parental alienation, family offenses and orders of protection, and the duty to report family offenses. The …
“Peace Officers”: New York Is Not Alone….
If you have been following this blog then you know that I have written several posts and articles relating to livestock animal cruelty law in New York. Pursuant to New York Agriculture & Markets Law, duly incorporated animal societies (principally the New York Society for the Prevention of Animal Cruelty (“SPCA”)) can obtain warrants to search and seize farm animals. …
Sunday Links
Happy May Day! I have had a great visit in Illinois visiting Lake Land College and family. Our pastureland grass is lush and green. Illinois has been hit with a lot of rain this spring. Dad *hopes* to plant corn next weekend. Had a nice afternoon catching up on blogs. Here are a few that caught my eye: 1. April …
Wind Energy Property Agreements
I came across a great article this morning by Jessica Shoemaker from the Farmers’ Legal Action Group, Inc. (“FLAG”) titled “Negotiating Wind Energy Property Agreements.” You can find the article online here. I also co-authored an article on wind leases that you can find here. If you are interested in negotiating a wind lease on your farm or ranch I …
Interview with Dr. Temple Grandin
I have previously noted on this blog my admiration for Dr. Temple Grandin as an animal scientist. She truly is an extraordinary woman and has done so much for the livestock industry. Last night, I was reading National Cattlemen’s Beef Association‘s (“NCBA”)Beef Issues Quarterly for Fall 2010 and on Page 23 there is a great interview with Dr. Temple Grandin. …
Spring Cleaning: Animal Handling Procedures in Employee Handbooks
I have written blogs/articles and have spoken on livestock animal cruelty law in New York and my various recommendations for building a defense. Among them, I recommend that livestock producers have an employee handbook in place that enumerates recommended animal handling procedures and regularly train employees on those procedures. An employee handbook is not a contract but is instead a general …