Farm Law and Ag Law Blog

      John was recently quoted in a DC Bureau piece of journalism regarding foreign farmland investment. You can find the article here:  Schwarz quoted in article on foreign farmland investment 

               I have read farm magazines for the vast majority of my life and still do.   Although I do most reading via the internet, there’s something about reading a printed farm magazine that I just can’t get out of my system.   Prior to the last five years or so, I don’t recall seeing a lot of “farm retirement” auction advertisements.   Sure, they were there, but they seem to have picked up during the last downturn in the farm economy.    I figured it was a lot of farmers who did not care to weather another economic downturn.   Seeing that we’ve now had 2-3 years of better years, and the retirement auctions have not subsided, perhaps even increased, I’m not so sure my thinking was correct.   Actually, using the word “retirement” and “farmer” in the same sentence was rare in years past.               What I have noticed is the difference between clients that were raised through the depression versus baby boomers.   Earlier in my career, when I had more farm clients that had li

                    If I did not farm, or was oblivious to grain prices, there would be one barometer that I could rely on to know what the price of grain is doing, and that is how many phone calls I get regarding oral farm leases and the timing necessary to terminate them.    Every time grain prices go up, I get numerous calls from farmers who have been farming a piece of land under an oral lease, only to find out that the landlord has decided to lease to someone who will pay a higher price.   Because oral leases are somewhat akin to the wild, wild west, the question always asked is whether or not termination was timely given, properly given, and if either did not occur, what are the farmer’s rights.                 In spite of the mantra of “get it in writing” that we are all told, I would venture to guess that at least a quarter, maybe upwards of half, of farm rental agreements are oral.   Most times, farmers have been farming the same land for many years and things have g