One of the newest growing trends in Minnesota farm divorces involves both divorcing parties seeking to acquire the farm operation’s productive assets (land, machinery, equipment, etc.). In the past, it was typically presumed that the “farming spouse” will end up with the productive farm ...Read More

Previous readers of Gislason & Hunter’s Financial Newsletter may recall discussion of a recent case decided by the Minnesota Court of Appeals regarding considerations to make in determining whether a grain bin is a fixture (and thus part of the real estate that can ...Read More

The drum beat toward renewable energy continues. Recently, Minnesota enacted new legislation requiring that 100% of the State’s energy be produced from carbon-free sources by 2040. This is not a distant, far-off goal. Though some new technologies might fill the gap, the obvious sources ...Read More

During the first two years of the Biden administration, when Democrats held majorities in both houses of Congresses, much of the activity in Washington focused on traditional lawmaking. But with the new Republican majority in the House of Representatives in January 2023, a flurry ...Read More

Farming equipment manufactured today has more software than ever before. The increased sophistication of this equipment has benefitted the agricultural industry in significant ways. For example, the integration of newer technologies into agricultural implements has resulted in measurable gains in productivity, yields, and revenue. ...Read More

Attraction and retention of a talented workforce is a common priority and, oftentimes, a challenge in today’s employment environment. Similarly, employers may look for ways to help ensure that when they devote time and resources to training employees, those employees do not subsequently begin ...Read More

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

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

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

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