I had a great time presenting last week to Lawline on a “Survey of Legal Issues Affecting Livestock Producers”. I have included my presentation slides below. [slideshare id=47744828&doc=lawline-livestockissues-150504153516-conversion-gate02]
Using Wills and Revocable Living Trusts for your Farm’s Estate Plan
Last week’s blog post focused on succession planning– this post will focus on farm estate planning by using wills and trusts (both equally important and can be easily confused). Let’s first look at the advantages and disadvantages of a will. A big advantage of a will is that it can be changed or revoked until the testator loses capacity to make, change, …
7 Important Farm Succession Planning Factors
Farmland is an important asset that should not be forgotten during estate or business planning. Even if farms will be passed down to future generations, estate planning should ensure that the parents are well taken care of for the remainder of their lives; provide for distribution of assets to descendants or other groups, individuals, or charities. Farm succession planning is …
Upcoming Lawline CLE: Survey of Legal Issues Affecting Livestock Producers
I will be giving a 1 hour presentation via Lawline on Wednesday, May 6, 2015 from 2:30pm to 3:30pm as part of its Food, Beverage and Agriculture Law event May 4-6, 2015. There will be a live broadcast during my presentation. If you are in NYC, you can also watch the presentation live at Lawline, located at 61 Broadway (between …
My “Ag Gag” Law Presentation Focusing on Preventative Practices for Farms
I had the opportunity to speak on “Ag Gag” Legislation this past week before the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Animals and the Law. My presentation focused on procedures for farms to help prevent a problem with undercover surveillance from employees. You can view my presentation below and my handout giving an overview of the laws here. [slideshare id=46222274&doc=aggag-150324092612-conversion-gate01]
Save the Date: Ag Law Webinar Series at Lawline
Save the dates for several upcoming agriculture law webinars at Lawline in Lower Manhattan. I will be giving live presentations for those of you around New York City. The recordings can be viewed afterwards. Each are 1 hour presentations worth 1 Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) credit in New York (CLE credits available in other states) Survey of Legal Issues Affecting …
Insurance: Documenting Property Losses, Before They Occur
Documenting details is important when it comes to making claims against an insurance policy, and many insurance contracts require it. Even if you experience damage that would clearly have been covered by your insurance policy, you may be out of luck if you haven’t specifically documented the existence and value of an asset to the company and you have no …
Umbrella Insurance
“Umbrella insurance” is a special additional coverage for liability not covered by your existing policies. The name “umbrella” improperly infers that umbrella insurance adds coverage in the “holes” of existing insurance policies; instead, umbrella insurance should be viewed as a “top hat.” It essentially raises your already existing limits and existing coverage. For example, if you have a $1 million …
Overview of Common Types of Insurance for Farms and Food Entrepreneurs
There are many different kinds of insurance that farms, agri-business and food entrepreneurs should consider. The most common types of insurance for food and agriculture operations are as follows: 1. Farmers Comprehensive Personal Liability (“FCPL”) Policy (a/k/a farmowner’s insurance): Most farms use a farmowner’s insurance policy to cover the ordinary risks of a farming operation. This type of policy normally …
Overview of Copyrights
Copyright is a form of intellectual property protection provided to the authors of “original works of authorship,” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works, both published and unpublished. Any expression, however, once written down in unique form, qualifies for copyright protection. Copyright protection comes into being as soon as an expression is recorded in some manner (in …
Questions about Being an Ag Lawyer
I was recently interviewed by a student writing a paper about agriculture careers. Here are a few of my responses to his questions. What interest did you have in agriculture that made you want to be an agriculture lawyer? When did that interest start? Did you always plan to be were you are now or did you expect something …
Overview of Business Entities, Liability and Insurance for the Food and Agriculture Producer
[slideshare id=43294080&doc=grownyc-businessentitiesandinsurance-150107134228-conversion-gate02] I spoke last night to GrowNYC Greenmarket Farmers about choice of business entities, liability, and insurance. A copy of my presentation is available above. This presentation gives an overview of business entities (e.g., sole proprietorship, general and limited partnerships, limited liability companies, corporations, cooperatives), trusts and not-for profit corporations for farms and food businesses. It then goes on …