Agriculture Overview Experience People News + Views + Events Notable Work Whether a client is a first-generation farmer, a multigenerational family operation, or an agribusiness of any size, Field Law can provide a wide array of legal services to suit their needs. Our team understands the distinct challenges that producers and agribusinesses face today, and we aim to help protect, secure, grow, and sustain our clients’ operations.
Our depth of experience in agriculture stems from our backgrounds in farming and ranching, feedlot, training horses, racing chuckwagons, and working rodeo roughstock. We come from the agriculture community and in many cases are still actively involved in it. We speak the language. This enables us to understand the full scope of our agricultural clients' circumstances and identify exceedingly unique issues necessary to effectively service ag-related legal needs.
With this knowledge and experience, we are well-equipped to help producers and agribusinesses navigate legal challenges and provide comprehensive guidance to achieve practical, cost-effective legal solutions. We also know that coming into the city can be a hassle, which is why we will come to you whenever possible.
| Field Law helps with: |
What we Offer: |
| Estate + Succession Planning |
- Wills, enduring powers of attorney and personal directives
- Succession planning and intergenerational transfers
- Agricultural estate litigation
- Estate administration
- Farm taxation, tax strategy and tax planning
- Family trusts, spousal trusts and trusts for children or grandchildren
- Guardianship and trusteeship matters
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| Disputes + Litigation |
- Agricultural debt claims
- Nuisance claims
- Equine liability matters
- Animal escape matters
- Motor vehicle and personal injury claims involving livestock
- Crop loss and property damage claims
- Land, property and fencing disputes
- Agricultural estate litigation
- Commercial and contract disputes
- Farm insolvency and bankruptcy
- FCC / AFSC disputes
- Disputes + proceedings pursuant to the Farm Debt Mediation Act
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| Corporate + Taxation |
- Business formation (corporations, partnerships, joint ventures, cooperatives, societies + charities)
- Corporate organization and restructuring
- Articles, bylaws, minute books
- Drafting and reviewing contracts and agreements
- Share and asset purchases, sales and transfers
- Farm taxation, tax strategy and tax planning
- Farm governance and management
- Commodity contracts and custom farming agreements
- Matters involving quota
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| Water + Irrigation |
- Irrigation and water rights
- Water allocation and diversion
- Agricultural activity in riparian areas
- Navigable water issues
- Runoff and environmental considerations
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| Land + Natural Resources |
- Surface rights and leases
- Mines, mineral and timber interests
- Grazing rights
- Public lands and recreational access
- Conservation easements
- Energy and utility easements
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| Employment + Occupational Health |
- Farm employment and workplace policies
- Employment standards and agricultural exemptions
- Custom farm safety programs
- OHS compliance
- Defence of statutory offences
- Employment agreements
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| Real Estate / Financing / Banking |
- Rural property conveyancing
- Agricultural purchase and sale
- Financing + refinancing
- Agricultural loans and loan agreements
- Banking arrangements
- Loan restructuring
- FCC / AFSC lending and insurance matters
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| Municipal + Regulatory |
- Land use planning + zoning
- Municipal rules and regulations
- Agricultural sales and marketing
- Interprovincial and international trade
- Provincial and federal regulatory matters
- Defence of regulatory offences
- Bylaw prosecutions and defence
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- Estate planning for farm and ranch families. Notably: drafted estate planning documents with sophisticated tax planning elements for a family cow-calf operation, accounting for special considerations owing to the existence of minor children; implemented estate freezes for agricultural corporations, and carefully considered corporate aspects of estate planning where a testator owned shares of an agricultural corporation.
- Represented farming, ranching, and feedlot operations with respect to escaped livestock and motor vehicle accidents involving personal injuries and livestock deaths.
- Counsel for farming operations in Alberta and Saskatchewan with respect to operating loans and financing matters, including oral and written applications to farmland government boards.
- Successfully resolved an estate claim involving an oral agreement between son and father with respect to the number of cattle that belonged to the son from their combined herd. Compensation was secured for the various materials and services the son had contributed to the farm. The result was achieved by appointing an administer ad litem which saved the parties significant legal fees and time of prolonged litigation.
- Successfully defended a reputable horse trainer facing severe allegations of equine liability, misconduct, and negligence in Alberta's Court of Justice. With a robust litigation strategy and strong and convincing written and oral submissions, the Court dismissed the claim against our client and she was able to get back to training horses and riders.
- Represented a family grain farm facing threats of litigation over seed haulage debts and successfully convinced the debt collector to refrain from pursuing legal action, saving our clients the significant time and expense of litigation. This result was achieved by raising clear and legally sound arguments as to why the debt collector's claim had no chance of success due to evidentiary and jurisdictional hurdles.
- Secured a favourable settlement from an insurance company that was denying a farmer’s claim for the contents they lost when their shop burnt down. This matter was resolved through direct settlement negotiations with the farmer’s insurance company and was completed without having to initiate litigation.
- Provided in-depth tax analysis and planning strategies to a farm family amid a contentious dispute involving the transfer of farm property. By providing several options on the farmland disposition in the circumstances, family members were able to agree on a certain type of property distribution.
- Represented farms and landowners with respect to crop damages, personal injuries sustained in the operation of farm equipment, and fire losses.
- Drafted a comprehensive standard form sales agreement for an agricultural drone startup company which included highly nuanced terms and conditions relating to the aerial application of crop inputs.
- Successfully defended an Agricultural Society that faced claims of vicarious liability, occupiers’ liability, breach of fiduciary duty, harassment, negligence, and aggravated damages after six days of trial. Through the use of Calderbank Offers we were able to secure enhanced costs for the successful defence of the lawsuit.
- Provided a detailed opinion on how farmland was to devolve to certain family members within a contentious estate claim where there were multiple landowners and the transfer of land did not specify the nature of the transfer.
- Counsel for the purchase and sale of farmland and rural properties in Alberta and Saskatchewan, including farmland with remediated wells on site, farmland subject to energy leases, and land with conveyancing parties in multiple jurisdictions.
- Provided a legal opinion on whether a farmer had a potential claim against their insurance company for the amount of compensation they received through an insurance claim on their timothy hay crop.
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