The Federal Clean Water Act (“CWA”) was enacted in 1972 with the goal of protecting the country’s waterways from pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) is charged with enforcing the CWA at the federal level. The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) works at the state level to protect New York’s water resources. While states must adhere to the …
CSA Agreements – Get Them In Writing
Although most CSA’s do not have a written contract, I highly suggest that farms have a simple CSA Agreement signed by the subscribers. Not only does it help secure payment terms, but the CSA Agreement should mitigate potential liability in the case of a food safety issue arising from the mishandling or misuse of the food product. It doesn’t have …
Using Social Media to be an Advocate for Agriculture
I developed the below presentation for the Oneida County, New York 4-H program a few weeks ago. The below presentation includes primarily screenshots illustrating use of social media to “tell the story” of agriculture to the American consumer. It’s been a few years since I have had a “Blogroll” – the presentation notes several nice blogs from agriculture producers, including …
Pace Law School: Survey to Food and Agriculture Law
Exciting news! I will be teaching a 1 credit summer course at Pace Law School, my alum, that will give a cursory overview of the laws regulating the U.S. food and agriculture system. The class will touch on the various practice areas affecting production agriculture and food entrepreneurs including farm programs, disaster assistance, environmental law, financing, right-to-farm, employment/labor law, livestock …
For You Iowa Folks – Recommended Agriculture Law Book
I recently finished reading Pat Dillon‘s book titled “Field Manual: Iowa Farmer’s Guide to Legal Issues.” It’s a great book and covers all the basics ranging from contract law, crop insurance, estate planning, farm leases to bankruptcy. Dillion is a good writer breaking down complicated legal concepts. The Kindle version is only $5.00 from Amazon. I give the book …
Giving New Life to the Term “Spring Cleaning” – Does Your Farm or AgriBusiness Have a Scanner?
I have to give a shout-out to a small little machine that has made a big difference to my life and law practice — the Fujitsu ScanSnap S1500M. In preparation of my move to my new office space at 535 Fifth Avenue, I spent the weekend scanning files and documents. I purchased this Bad Boy a few months ago and …
Upcoming ABA Crop & Livestock Insurance CLE
As part of my new leadership role with the American Bar Association (“ABA”) General Practice, Solo & Small Firm Division’s Agriculture Law Committee, I have been busy helping plan a Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) webinar on crop and livestock insurance. This program will lay down the fundamental building blocks for practicing either crop and or livestock insurance law. Please mark your …
Fridays With Cari – Upcoming Webinar Series
Thanks to Ranch House Designs, there have been a few changes recently to www.rinckerlaw.com. I would like to bring your attention to the new “Events” page located here. Beginning in November, I am starting a new webinar series titled “Fridays with Cari” that will focus on a myriad of food and agriculture law issues including New York livestock animal cruelty …
Will Be Speaking on Farm/Ranch Partnerships at the AALA Symposium
I will be a panelist speaking on partnerships on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at the American Agriculture Law Association (“AALA”) 32nd Annual Agriculture Law Symposium in Austin, Texas. The name of the session is “Partnerships: The Neglected, The Disaster and The Desirable Plan.” We will be talking about partnerships with farms, ranches and agri-businesses. The moderator for the session is …
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 …
Heading to Nebraska for the AALA Conference
Today I am getting on an airplane from LGA and heading to Omaha, Nebraska for the American Agriculture Law Association‘s (“AALA”) 31st Annual Agriculture Law Symposium. I’m always excited to meet other food and agriculture attorneys. Nebraska is such a great agriculture state. I haven’t been to Omaha for a few years. This year’s conference has an excellent line-up: On …
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