I have two very exciting announcements today. First, this month’s ABA Journal has an article on yours truly! You can read the full article here. I’m very proud to be one of the few cowgirls in NYC (and I think the only agriculture attorney). Thank you to all my family, friends, colleagues, support staff, “ag tweeps” and regular blog readers …
Liability in Highway Accidents Involving Livestock
There was an interesting article on page 5 of the May 16, 2011 edition of County Folks by Jay Girvin, Esq. of Girvin & Ferlazzo, P.C. about whether a livestock owners can be held liable if their animal wanders off their farm and causes a highway accident. You can review the full article online here. Mr. Girvin accurately noted that …
Overview of State Laws Relating to the Amount of Space Given to Farm Animals
I am speaking today in Atlantic City at the New Jersey State Bar Association’s (“NJSBA”) Annual Meeting on a couple farm animal law issues. One of the topics that I will be addressing today includes an overview of state legislation/regulation over the amount of space given to farm animals. Seven states have had laws sponsored by the Humane Society of …
Downtown Lawyers
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. …
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 …
“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 …
New York Business Structures
Over the weekend I stumbled across the materials from the First Annual Meeting of New York Agri-Women and reviewed this excellent article titled “Doing Business in New York State: Structures and Strategies” by Bruce L. Anderson, Brian M. Henehan, and Charles J. Sullivan, Esq. Mr. Sullivan spoke on business organizations at the New York Agri-Women’s annual meeting. If you have …