I was excited to record this episode with Beth Rumley while I was in New York City a few weeks ago getting an update on where we are with animal confinement laws on this episode of Ag Law Today. It was an update from Episode 46 found here. I am an adjunct at Vermont Law School online and several of …
This project has nothing to do with law .. but my love for my son, my family’s farm and being a mother. Last April, I became a mother to a beautiful baby boy. During my maternity leave, I wrote a children’s book one morning. It’s a poem about Jace going to my family’s beef cattle farm in Shelbyville, Illinois and …
You have spent years building your small business, but have you taken time to consider what will happen to it when you retire, become disabled, or pass away? Although it is often hard to fathom an event that may not occur for many years, it is important to put plans in place in advance. The failure to do so could …
Divorces among farm families inherently have animal issues – not only with live animals but also with genetic material (e.g., embryos, semen). These are important property disputes for some farm families. Depending on the state, companion animals can be treated differently. Companion Animals To begin, companion animals typically include dogs and cats, but can also include some exotic animals and …
I’m very excited to announce that I have my very own podcast! It’s called “Ag Law Today” and coordinated and published with the help of Purdue University Extension Education. Its website is here– and you can watch the podcast feed here. Tiffany Dowell Lashmet from Texas A & M University Extension Education is my guest for the premier podcast – …
This presentation will be given to the Illinois Beef Association this Thursday in Galina, Illinois, at its annual meeting. It discusses the differences between estate planning, succession planning and business planning. Then it delves into the Who, What, When, Where, How and How Much. It too discusses how to have those difficult conversations and using mediation in this process. [slideshare …
This expansive outline on farm labor laws was created for the 2018 Illinois Specialty Crops, Agri-Tourism and Organic Conference in Springfield, Illinois. It covers employment classifications (e.g., employer, employee, independent contractor), unpaid farm labor (e.g., internships, apprenticeships, volunteer farm labor, hiring and firing practices, wage and hour laws (including child labor laws), the Family Medical Leave Act, and employee handbooks.
New York, like most states, has its own “right-to-farm” law. Unfortunately for neighbors that are complaining of activities that are due to farming, right-to-farm laws serve to protect qualifying farmers and ranchers from nuisance lawsuits filed by individuals who move into a rural area where normal farming operations exist, and who later use nuisance actions to attempt to stop those …
I gave a presentation a few weeks ago on the Veterinary Feed Directive via Lawline. You can listen to the video below; however, if you would like to get a copy of my presentation materials (and get CLE credits for you lawyers!) then please register with Lawline here. I break this presentation into 2 parts: (1) I review the background …
A stocker cattle contract is used when a cattle producer wants to hire someone to feed out the progeny through weaning. There are several issues to consider when a cattle producer hires a stocker feeder after the progeny are weaned. Here are just a few considerations for the stocker cattle agreement: • Feed and Nutrition: This section should include pasture quality …
In June 2015, the Food & Drug Administration (“FDA”) promulgated the second Veterinary Feed Directive (“VFD”) affecting livestock producers that use medicated feed and water. The final rule became effective in October 2015 transitioning Over-the-Counter (“OTC”) drugs to be VFD through January 1, 2017. This requires veterinarians to have a Veterinary-Client-Patient Relationship (“VCPR”) and use a VFD to prescribe the …