Happy Friday! I gave a presentation yesterday to the National Agricultural Law Center along with the great Tiffany Dowell. The below presentation focuses on active v. passive income, basic types of farm leases, and general farm lease provisions. Hope that it is helpful! [slideshare id=32186578&doc=nalcfarmleases-140311132029-phpapp01]
Farm and Ranch Lease Webinar
I will be presenting on farm and ranch leases on March 12, 2014 with Tiffany Dowel, an agriculture lawyer and extension specialist with Texas A & M University for the National Agricultural Law Center (“NALC”). The CLE is titled “Farm & Ranch Leases: Overview and Practical Negotiation Pointers.” The webinar is free to members of the American Agricultural Law Association. …
Using Business Entities as a Risk Management Tool for Your Farm or Food Business
I enjoyed presenting at the NOFA-NY Annual Meeting last Sunday in Saratoga Springs, NY. My presentation on “Using Business Entities as a Risk Management Tool to Help Organic Growth for your Food & Agriculture Business” is below. [slideshare id=30215443&doc=organicgrowthforyourbusiness-useofbusinessentities-140120092329-phpapp02]
Organic Growth for your Food & Agri-Business- Using Business Entities as a Risk Management Tool
I’ll be speaking this Sunday, January 26, 2014 at the Northeast Organic Farming Association (“NOFA”) of New York’s Annual Meeting in Saratoga Falls. My presentation is titled “Getting Prepared for Organic Growth: Using Business Entities as a Risk Management Tool.” My presentation will give an overview of the different choices of business entities, including sole proprietorships, general partnerships, limited partnerships, …
C-Corp, S-Corp, B-Corp- Huh? What’s Best for Your Food and Agriculture Operation
Under NY Business Corporation Law (“BCL”), a corporation is formed in New York by filing a Certificate of Incorporation with the NYS Department of State. Individual shareholders will not be held personally liable for the debt of the corporation unless the “corporate shield” can be pierced. The corporate shield can be pierced in New York if a court finds that the …
Partnerships – A Common Entity Choice for Food and Agriculture Operations
At one point or another, most food and agriculture operations form a partnership with another person or entity. Perhaps it is a partnership on a single head of livestock (e.g., stallion, bull, boar, show heifer) or perhaps it is a more long-term partnership where profits and losses will be shared among family members or multiple people and entities. Partnerships can happen …
Upcoming Farm Commons Webinars for Farmers
Rachel Armstong of Farm Commons has put together a killer list of webinars on a myriad of legal topics important for farmers, among them include: – Overview of Farm Legal Issues – Community Supported Agriculture Legal Issues – Hosting On-Farm Events – Workers and Employees -Selling Products to Larger Buyers -Starting a Farm -Adding Value to Farm Products -Food Safety …
Attending American Agri-Women Convention
I’m blogging today from my iPad at the American Agri-Women Convention in Niagara Falls. As I type this, I am listing to Tami Forero speak on “How to Build the Business that Creates the Life You Want.” She is speaking later this afternoon on “Delegating: A Guide to Higher Profits for Control Freaks” (fun title). It’s always inspiring to be …
Free CLE: Counseling the Local Food Movement (Part One)
I gave this presentation to Lawline last Thursday. It was the first part of a two part series on “Counseling the Local Food Movement.” I discussed the history of direct farm marketing, current trends, cottage food operations (i.e., home based food processing), liability and insurance. You can listen to my presentation and get a FREE CLE by clicking here. …
Stocker Cattle Contracts
There are several issues to consider when a cattle producer hires a stocker feeder after the progeny are weaned. Besides the payment terms and term, example issues include the following: 1. Feed and nutrition (including pasture quality and supplemental vitamins and nutrients); 2. Animal health (including vaccinations, veterinary care, deworming for internal parasites); and, 3. Control of pests (e.g., insecticides, …
Attending the 2013 Annual Agriculture Law Symposium
I am looking forward to the American Agriculture Law Association (“AALA”) Annual Meeting on October 31-November 2, 2013 in Madison, Wisconsin. You can find a brochure for the conference online here. If you’re there, please be sure to say hello. Of course I will be tweeting from the conference with the hashtag #AA13. The Annual Updates in Agriculture Law …