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Category: The Law of Agriculture

Commerce Clause is Coming to Town

The law is split into many areas. Torts, Criminal, Real Property, Family, Estates, Contracts, and Constitutional law just to name a few. As an attorney, I only work in a few of these many areas of law. But as a farmer, and as a citizen generally, I participate in all areas of law either by obedience of the law or by feeling the economic and societal effects of the law. Every law ends up governing us in some fashion, whether we are even aware of the law and its effects or not.

If all laws end up governing us in some fashion, the question is: Is there any area of daily life the law can’t touch and govern me in? Answering this question is one of the primary purposes of the Consti [...]

Free Land!

Free Land! If this sounds too good to be true, guess what? You are correct, it isn’t true — I have no free land to sell you. But is free land ever possible? Well, yes, sort of — there are attorney’s fees, of course.

The legal term is Adverse Possession. The idea behind Adverse Possession is that if someone takes possession of another’s land for a statutory period of time, the person with possession gets to take the land free and clear. With all laws, or operations of the law, there is always a governmental interest being supported or a public policy being promoted. I’m sure we can all agree that the government is batting 1000 at working in our best interest, so there [...]

The Tough Get Going

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. If you read last week’s column, you will recognize this opening line as it is the exact same line. This article is number 2 of a 3-part series on Chapter 12 Bankruptcy for family farmers. The first article was a broad overview and introduction to bankruptcy. This second article will discuss the finer details of Chapter 12 Bankruptcy, including qualifications, the process, and the end results of the bankruptcy. The third and final article in the series will discuss best practices to, hopefully, avoid bankruptcy altogether; stay tuned next week.

With so much to discuss, I will skip the usual philosophical thoughts such as “When l [...]

When the Going Gets Tough

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. This has been the M.O. (“Modus Operandi” — it’s the Law, of course there is a Latin origin) of farmers for years. To push through, don’t look back, don’t look sideways, just keep going forward. Philosophically speaking, this is honorable and commendable and we, as farmers, leaders, and heads of households, absolutely should get going and do whatever it takes to provide for those who rely on us — including the American consumer, our employees, and our families. Practically speaking, the attitude of never looking back or sideways for reflection or alternatives is rather ridiculous and irresponsible. Providing for those who rely o [...]

Getting Down to Business… Organizations

Most farmers would probably prefer the government stay out of their business. Most farmers are also the type of people who will do a handshake deal and just get to work rather than filling out paperwork. Trust and a handshake is a great way to do business and I honestly wish it were realistic to conduct business like this all of the time; but this approach is very dangerous in today's world. Specifically, it’s dangerous to conduct business in this way when you don’t know the other parties involved. If you think you don’t ever conduct business without knowing the other party, think again. When you start a business you open yourself up to business with the world because the world is w [...]

Your Farm and Government Payment Limitations

Last week I discussed the basics of Business Organizations and liability protection. This week’s discussion will be focused more specifically on how this relates to the farm business. The biggest concern in relation to farmers and Business Organizations is the factor of government payment limitations. When it often feels like the government takes so much from us, nobody wants to limit how much money they can get from the government when they finally get in the mood to give some back.

Government payments are in 3 major areas: Commodity programs, Conservation programs, and Disaster Assistance Programs. How the government determines limitations, which will be discussed here, appl [...]

THE Law of Agriculture

The United States Constitution contains 7 Articles and 27 Amendments. From this, the judiciary has interpreted and defined every word; applying the principles contained within to nearly every circumstance imaginable. Thus the judiciary, with its 234 years of rulings and the principle of “stare decisis” (courts must follow precedent) has created much of the law we have today. Of course there is also the legislature who has enacted north of 30,000 statutes since its creation in 1789. So far we have only discussed the Federal government. There are an additional 50 constitutions, 50 state versions of a Supreme Court, and 50 legislatures. The number of laws within our great nation is essen [...]

Preparing for the Worst (and Best)

Prepare yourself for a shock to the system because this one is a doozy; the best way to avoid bankruptcy is to become more profitable and pay off debts. Shocking, I know. You are likely thinking, “Thank you Captain Obvious,” to which I’d say, “You’re very welcome.” All joking aside, the statement “be more profitable and pay off debts” is basically useless by itself as it provides no practical implications. But I implore you to keep that mantra in the back of your mind during this article because “be more profitable and pay off debts” needs to be the guiding principle behind every decision moving forward if you need to avoid or prepare for a bankruptcy. My previous two [...]

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