7 Farm Succession Planning Mistakes That Can Tear a Family Apart addresses a problem many farm families quietly postpone. Parents, farming children, and off-farm siblings may each hold different expectations about what will happen. When those expectations are never discussed or documented, grief can quickly become conflict. Farm succession planning should coordinate land ownership, management, retirement, incapacity planning, equipment, leases, …
In this installment of Ask Sam and Kendal, Rincker Law, PLLC associate attorneys Sam Ellis and Kendal A. Schoepfer explain why transferring a farm to an LLC or trust became an important legal question after the federal government’s Residential Real Estate Reporting Rule took effect on March 1, 2026. Below, we explore “Could Transferring a Farm to an LLC or …
The Illinois Farmer’s Annual Legal Checklist: What to Review Each Season can help farm owners address legal and business issues before they become expensive problems. Farming rarely leaves much time for paperwork, but contracts, leases, insurance policies, employment records, succession plans, and business filings should not be ignored until a dispute or emergency occurs. Dividing these reviews by season can …
Choosing the Right Business Structure for a Farm or Family-Owned Business is an important decision that may need to be revisited as the operation grows, changes ownership, or prepares for the next generation. The structure selected can affect limited liability protection, taxation, management authority, financing, succession planning, and what happens when an owner dies, becomes disabled, divorces, retires, or leaves …
Farm Partnership Disputes: How Mediation Can Help Before Harvest Season is especially timely as summer fieldwork intensifies and harvest approaches. A disagreement over money, management, equipment, land, or workload can disrupt operations. It may also strain family relationships and put the farm at risk. Addressing the conflict early through negotiation, mediation, or another appropriate process may help protect the operation …
Business disputes can quickly become expensive, stressful, and disruptive. Alternatives to Litigation for Illinois Business Disputes: Mediation and Arbitration, is an important topic for business owners, partners, shareholders, LLC members, family businesses, and agricultural operations that want to better understand their options before immediately turning to court. At Rincker Law, PLLC, the firm helps clients throughout Central Illinois evaluate business, …
For many families, the idea of going through a courtroom battle during divorce can feel emotionally and financially overwhelming. Alternatives to Litigation in Illinois Divorce Cases are often considered because they may help couples resolve disputes more privately, efficiently, and collaboratively. This can be especially important in cases involving family farms, agricultural assets, closely held businesses, or multi-generational property. Rincker …
In Illinois, farmers and rural landowners may use mediation or arbitration to resolve farm-related disputes outside of court. These options can be especially useful in lease, boundary, easement, drainage, and family-farm succession matters, where preserving working relationships and minimizing disruption are important. That is why Alternatives to Litigation for Illinois Farmland Disputes should be considered before a disagreement turns into …
Farm Succession Planning Is Also Business Planning: What Illinois Farm Families Should Consider is an important reminder that passing down a farm is not only an estate planning issue. For many Illinois farm families, succession planning may also involve business structure, management authority, contracts, leases, taxes, family communication, land ownership, and long-term decision-making. A farm is often more than a …
Farm Business Disputes in Illinois: How to Protect the Family Farm Before Conflict Escalates is an important topic for farm owners, agribusiness partners, and multi-generational farm families who want to avoid preventable conflict. Many farm disputes do not start with a lawsuit. They often begin with unclear expectations, informal agreements, unequal workloads, vague ownership arrangements, or a lack of communication …
How Is a Farm Divided in an Illinois Divorce? A Central Illinois Guide for Farmers is one of the most important questions farm families face when a marriage ends. Unlike a typical divorce, farm divorces often involve land, equipment, livestock, and business interests that may have been built over generations. Understanding how Illinois courts approach these issues can help you …
Illinois Farm Divorce: What Happens to Equipment, Livestock, and Crops? It is a question many farm families face when a marriage begins to break down. Unlike traditional divorces, farm divorces involve complex, high-value assets that are essential to daily operations. In Illinois, farm divorces are governed by the same property division rules as other divorces. However, assets like equipment, livestock, …