On August 1, 2023, Minnesota became the twenty-third state to legalize the recreational use of cannabis for adults over the age of twenty-one.1 With legalization, many employers may be left asking how they should handle their current drug testing policies related to cannabis. Unlike many of the earlier-adopting states, the Minnesota legislature enacted protections for...

Minnesota continues to expand leave benefits for employees caring for themselves and family members. With the passage of earned sick and safe time and the increased eligibility for pregnancy and parenting leave, Minnesota created a paid family and medical leave (“MNFML”) benefits program. This article highlights quick facts about MNFML. Beginning January 1, 2026, MNFML...

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 assets while the “nonfarming spouse” will receive fair compensation using other...

During the Ag Lending Conference on September 7th, I reported that an injunction had been entered in Texas preventing the CFPB from enforcing Rule 1071 against the parties to that case. I also mentioned a pending Kentucky case motion requesting the same relief from members of the Kentucky Bankers Association. At that time, I stated...

Portions reprinted with permission from the Minnesota Bankers Association On July 31, a federal court in Texas issued an injunction preventing the CFPB from enforcing its 1071 rule until the U.S. Supreme Court decides on the constitutionality of the CFPB’s funding structure in a separate case. That ruling is expected in the summer of 2024....

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 be pledged through a mortgage) or is personal property (and thus...

The Minnesota Legislature recently passed a law rendering all covenants not to compete in employment agreements signed on or after July 1, 2023. The new law makes any covenant not to compete contained in an employment (or independent contractor) agreement/contract void and unenforceable if the agreement/contract was executed on or after July 1, 2023. This...