Are you interested in agricultural law?  Do you want to hear from some of the best agricultural lawyers in the country?  We’ve got just the podcast for you!  The Ag Law in the Field Podcast releases bi-weekly and features a wide variety of topics impacting agriculture.  You can find us on all of your favorite podcast apps, just search for Ag Law in the Field or click here for our website. If you are not familiar with Ag Law in the Field or with podcasts in general, don’t panic.  This is simply another resource we have available for you to learn more about agricultural ..read more

The agricultural news continues to roll in from across the country. *Texas farmers file discrimination lawsuit against USDA.  Several Texas farmers have filed suit in federal court against the USDA claiming that in administering payment programs, the USDA illegally discriminated on the basis of race and sex.  Specifically, the farmers argue that the USDA improperly used different payment calculation methods for “socially disadvantaged” farmers (American Indians, Alaskan Natives, Asians, Asian-Americans, blacks/African-Americans, Hispanics, Hispanic-Americans, Native Hawaiians or othe ..read more

The Austin Court of Appeals recently considered, Adcock v. Cal-Maine Foods, Inc., a lawsuit involving nuisance and trespass claims against a Texas feed mill filed by a neighboring landowner. Photo by James Baltz  Background Cal-Maine operates a chicken-feed mill.  Adcock is a neighboring property owner. In April 2019, Adcock sued Cal-Maine for nuisance and trespass complaining of the company’s “torment” of him and other residents since it acquired the mill from a prior owner 15 years ago.  He complains of Cal-Maine’s alleged release of “putrid odor of animal waste and che ..read more

We’ve made it through another week and have another long list of ag law news from around the country! Photo by david Griffiths  *Avian influenza found in dairy cows in Texas and Kansas and goat in Minnesota.  State agencies announced this week that a disease found in some dairy cows in Texas and Kansas was identified as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).  A goat in Minnesota on a farm where chickens had the virus also recently tested positive as well.  The USDA believes the source of HPAI at the dairies is migratory birds.  USDA says that HPAI is killed in the ..read more

The Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston recently ruled in Malhorta v. Quintanilla, a lawsuit that involved a boundary line dispute and the location of fence and debris. Photo by duong chung  Background Mr. Quintanilla and Mr. Malhorta are neighboring landowners.  Quintanilla filed a lawsuit against Malhorta seeking damages for trespass because of a fence encroaching on his property. Quintanilla hired a surveyor who concluded that the fence dividing their two properties encroached onto Quintanilla’s property.   As early as 2017,  Quintanilla requested Malhorta move ..read more

It has only been two weeks since our last Weekly Round Up, but there have been a number of major news items related to agricultural law! Photo by Dan Dennis  * Resources for producers and landowners impacted by Panhandle wildfires.  On Monday, we posted a blog with information for producers and landowners who suffered losses during the wildfires about resources available. We have continued to update that document as additional resources have been announced.  To read more, click here.  In particular, I want to highlight an announcement from USDA about $6 million in EQIP fu ..read more

Last week, in Union Pacific Railroad Co. & Ezra Alderman Ranches v. Prado, the Texas Supreme Court addressed the liability of a landowner and railroad company when a railroad crossing fatality occurs on private land. Background In 2015, Rolando Prado, Jr. died when his pickup was struck by a Union Pacific (UP) train.  The crossing at issue is on private property owned by Ezra Alderman Ranches (the Ranch).  Prado was returning from his first day working at a new jobsite about 7:30 pm. He was driving at or under the posted 30 MPH speed limit.  He passed through an open ra ..read more

It has certainly been a challenging week here in the Texas Panhandle.  Thank you to everyone who checked on me and my family.  Things got pretty intense for us on Tuesday as an evacuation order was issued.  We were able to get our cattle out of the pasture closest to the fire.  The fire missed our property, but so many others were not as fortunate.   The fires continue to burn. Many of you have asked how you can help.  Here is information on the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension relief efforts:   With that, let’s jump into the ag law news around the cou ..read more

Did you know we host three different live programs around the state of Texas every year?  We’ve already kicked off our 2024 schedule with a great event in Tyler.  Below, please find all of our upcoming 2024 events. Note that both the Owning Your Piece of Texas programs and Ranchers Leasing Workshops offer CE credit for real estate agents.  To see more information or to register for any of these events, click below. San Angelo Owning Your Piece of Texas San Angelo Ranchers Leasing Workshop San Marcos Owning Your Piece of Texas Crockett Ranchers Leasing Workshop Bonham Direct Bee ..read more

The Texas Supreme Court recently ruled in Albert v. Fort Worth & Western Railroad Company, a case addressing legal access to a landlocked tract of land in Johnson County.  This case is a great reminder of the law regarding access to property and the various types of implied easements in Texas law. Photo by Robert Linder Background At issue in this case is access to a 10-acre property located in Johnson County, Texas (“the Property”).  It is separated from State Highway 171 by a strip of land owned by the Ft. Worth & Western Railroad Company (“the Railroad Tract”). Orig ..read more