What is a land trust? The use of the phrase “land trust” can often lead to confusion, as it relates to a few completely distinct concepts. On the one hand, a land trust may refer to an estate planning tool wherein title to the land is held by a trustee at the owner’s request. On the other hand, a land …
For individuals who own real estate, it is important to consider the best way to structure your ownership. When you are just starting out as an investor in real estate, you may hold title to the real estate personally, but that may not be the most advantageous method of ownership. Another option is to create a limited liability company (LLC) …
Are you considering leasing office or retail space for your small business? The terms of your lease can have a huge impact on whether your business succeeds or fails. There are several important provisions that should be considered before you sign on the dotted line. Leases of a certain duration (usually one to three years, depending upon the state) are …
In a partition lawsuit, all of the parties who have an interest must be sued. See 735 ILCS 5/17-103. The suit must be filed in the county where the property is located. See 735 ILCS 5/17-101. When jurisdiction over everyone is established, the judge appoints a commissioner to investigate the property. See 735 ILCS 5/17-106. For things like farm land, …
In New York, property owners grazing livestock are required to erect, maintain and repair the fenceline. Under New York Town Law § 300, each owner of two adjoining tracts of land is required to erect and maintain a fence to keep his/her grazing animals separate, unless they agree (in writing) to let their lands lie open to allow the animals to …
I thought it would be helpful to educate my readers on the government agencies that affect the food and agriculture system in the United States. I will be going through the various agencies one by one. So please stay tuned! The U.S. Forest Service (“FS”) is a sub-agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) and overseen by the Under …
I was recently posed this question from a farmer close to retirement concerned about social security. He has been farming his whole life and would like to shift into a landlord role. In way of background, you must have a certain number of credits under the social security system before receiving social security based eligible quarters. A farmer may have …
According to Dean Patricia Salkin in American Bar Association’s “Counseling the Local Food Movement” (May 2012), the following zoning tools can be used to promote small-scale agriculture production within city limits: Comprehensive Plans. This is the over-arching plan upon which land use regulations are adopted. It is important that the comprehensive plan itself emphasize the importance of small-scale commercial agriculture …
I have enjoyed reading through the Harvard Law School’s Food Law & Policy Clinic’s publication titled “Good Laws, Good Food: Putting Local Food Policy to Work for Our Communities.” Section III (beginning on page 30) does a nice job giving a cursory overview of land use law. As the article correctly states, the authority to regulate land use is derived …