Insights

Interview Do’s and Don’ts for Employers
There are many areas of a job applicant’s life that a person may be curious about, but an employer should steer clear of. This article identifies some of the questions employers should avoid (Interview Don’ts) and things employers you should remember and do when ...Read More

How to Administer an Estate: The Personal Representative’s Handbook
Introduction
So, you’ve been nominated as a Personal Representative of someone’s estate. Chances are that the estate you’ve been asked to administer belongs to one of your parents. You, as the most responsible (or physically closest) child, want to honor the decedent’s wishes and fairly ...Read More

Employees Using THC – Legally? Navigating Employee Drug Testing In The Post-Legalization Era
The Road to Legalization?
The road to our current legal field began with the federal 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized the cultivation and sale of hemp at the federal level. Specifically, any hemp containing a maximum of 0.3% THC by weight was now considered “legal” ...Read More

Top 5 Compliance Issues for Employers Using H-2A Visa Workers
The H-2A program allows foreign workers to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature in the United States. This program, however, has stringent rules carrying substantial civil and criminal penalties for employers violating the program. Five common employer compliance issues ...Read More

Carbon Contract Basics
Carbon markets (either voluntary or mandatory through government regulation) have emerged in recent years as a practical means to use free-market economic principles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate global climate change. In carbon markets, businesses or individuals who reduce greenhouse gas emissions ...Read More

Minnesota Supreme Court Determines Limbo Creek Can be Regulated as a Public Water
The Minnesota Court Supreme Court recently issued a decision concerning which watercourses in the state could be treated as “public waters” under various state statutes and regulations. The case arose out of a petition to improve Renville County Ditch 77 by cleaning the outlet ...Read More

Public Drainage Projects: Navigating the Legal, Environmental, and Political Challenges
The success of cash crop farming in Minnesota is due in large part to the work our ancestors in this state did to convert wet and even flooded property into dry farmland. Through systems of open ditches and buried pipe, land was made farmable ...Read More

Terms to Consider as You Renegotiate Your Farm Lease
Anumber of recent economic developments will likely impact the negotiation of farmland leases following the 2022 crop year. For example, landlords may want to increase rent because commodity prices are generally rising, and farmland values are going up across the Midwest. On the other ...Read More

Insurance Basics: Moving Toward a Greater Understanding of the Role of Commercial Insurance in the Agricutural Industry
Throughout my nearly 15 years of practicing law, I have observed a wide range of perspectives, understandings, and tolerances from agricultural producers and other businesses regarding the topic of insurance. Some find insurance a combination of overwhelming, confusing, and boring. If given the choice, ...Read More

Modernization of Qualified Newspaper Legal Notice Publication Requirements
Earlier this year, the Minnesota Legislature updated the statute pertaining to the publication of legal notices in so-called “qualified newspapers,” reflecting the broad national trend of newspapers moving away from physical copies and emphasizing digital editions.
Effective August 1, 2022, qualified newspapers are now required ...Read More