Unique nuisance case produces unique Right to Farm Act ruling

Indiana’s courts have traditionally been very strong supporters of the Right to Farm Act, a law that shields farms from being sued for creating a “nuisance” because a neighbor dislikes the sights, smells or sounds of the nearby farm.  If you live in the country, you should expect to smell manure once in while.  That’s what the Indiana Court of Appeals stated more eloquently in 1987, when it upheld the Right to Farm Act in a nuisance suit against an Indiana hog farmer:

We must observe that pork production generates odors which cannot be prevented, and so long as the human race consumes pork, someone must tolerate the smell. [The Right to Farm Act] addresses that fundamental fact and protects pork production when it is confined to its natural habitat, that is, rural farm communities . . . 

Does the EPA Need to Flyover Farms to Know Where They Are?

Recently, Indiana-Illinois Agri-News ran a good article on the topic of EPA flyovers. Jeannine Otto at Agri-News interviewed a local cattleman, who echoed the concerns from other livestock owners in Nebraska, Iowa, and elsewhere:

“If you’ve got issues, come to the door. Don’t be sneaking in with an airplane just because you’ve got the power of the government behind you,” said Steve Foglesong, a cattleman from Astoria in Fulton County.

“It doesn’t sit very well with me,” Foglesong said. “It seems to me to be a bit of a waste of taxpayers’ money.”

Dealing with Distressed Properties

On August 20, 2012, I'll be speaking to lenders, attorneys, and real estate professionals about dealing with distressed properties.  Everyone knows that there are thousands of distressed properties on the market right now, with more in the pipeline.  The seminar will tackle a number of current topics, including:

• The nuts and bolts of the foreclosure process, including its requirements and pitfalls.
• Using various workout tools and loan modification options at your disposal to avoid foreclosure.
• Recognizing the title issues involved in the foreclosure and workout context and learn how to resolve them.
• Mitigating the environmental risk associated with troubled assets using tips from our experienced faculty. 

My portion of the program involves the last of these topics, how to resolve environment issues before, during, or after the foreclosure process.

If you would like to know more, please click here.  The conference will be held at the Capital Conference Center, 201 N. Illinois Street, Indianapolis, Indiana.