Your ground is the most valuable asset you own. Every transaction, lease, and easement deserves legal attention from an attorney who understands agriculture.
When a quarter section comes up for sale, the timeline is tight. Sellers want offers fast, lenders need clean title, and one mistake in the purchase agreement can cost you tens of thousands — or worse, the deal itself.
The same goes for leasing. We’ve seen farm leases that left the tenant entirely exposed because nobody thought through what happens when the landowner dies or sells the ground mid-season.
Whether you are buying 80 acres, negotiating a cash rent agreement, or dealing with a 50-year wind energy lease, the contract you sign dictates exactly what you can and cannot do on your own ground. We make sure those contracts are written to protect you, not just the other party.
Wind and solar leases lock up your land for decades. We review every clause — royalty calculations, decommissioning bonds, crop loss compensation, and setback requirements — to make sure the deal works for you, not just the developer.
Energy companies are aggressive. Their leases are 40+ pages long, and they are written exclusively for the developer’s benefit. Never sign their first draft.
A turbine only takes up a fraction of an acre, but the standard lease gives the developer rights to build access roads, laydown yards, and underground collection lines anywhere on your property. We negotiate strict geographic limits to protect your tillable acres and drainage tile.
Most initial terms are 30 years, but developers embed automatic renewal options that only they control, effectively locking up the land for half a century. We negotiate termination rights and aggressive rent escalators to account for decades of inflation.
If the energy company goes bankrupt in year 25, who pays the $300,000 to tear down the turbine? Standard leases leave that liability on the landowner. We demand third-party decommissioning bonds that increase in value over time.
A sloppy energy lease can violate the terms of an existing trust, prevent you from selling the land, or trigger massive tax consequences. We ensure the lease aligns perfectly with your succession goals.
Have an energy developer offering you a contract?
Let us review it. The cost of our legal review is a fraction of what a bad lease will cost you over 40 years.
Request a Lease ReviewA verbal handshake agreement works well until the landowner dies and the heirs decide they want a higher rent, or they decide to sell the ground mid-season.
A properly drafted farm lease protects the tenant’s right to harvest and the landlord’s dirt. We draft comprehensive Cash Rent, Crop-Share, and Grazing agreements that address the realities of modern farming.
Preventing soil mining by stipulating fertilizer requirements, residue management, and organic matter targets.
Clearly defining who pays for and performs maintenance on pivots, tile lines, terraces, and boundary fences.
Does the tenant have the right to hunt the ground? Sublease hunting rights? A good lease explicitly separates ag rights from recreational rights.
In Nebraska, verbal farm leases automatically convert to year-to-year tenancies. To terminate a verbal lease for the following year, written notice must be given prior to September 1st.
Missing this deadline by a single day means the tenant farms it for another entire year. We help landowners and tenants document their agreements properly so nobody gets blindsided.
Selling farm real estate can trigger massive capital gains taxes. A properly structured 1031 Exchange allows you to sell a property and reinvest the proceeds into a new “like-kind” property, deferring all capital gains taxes.
The rules are strict. You have exactly 45 days to identify replacement property and 180 days to close. We work with Qualified Intermediaries (QIs) to execute these transactions flawlessly.
For retiring farmers, we also facilitate 721 Exchanges into Delaware Statutory Trusts (DSTs), converting active farmland into passive, tax-deferred real estate income.
We draft and review purchase agreements, examine title commitments, resolve boundary and easement issues, and coordinate closings — whether you’re buying 80 acres or selling a section.
Energy companies bring long-term leases with buried clauses. We review every page, negotiate better terms, and make sure you understand exactly what you’re signing — and for how long.
Cash rent, crop-share, and grazing leases that account for what boilerplate templates miss — maintenance duties, CRP transfers, early termination, and ownership changes.
Tax-deferred strategies for selling and reinvesting in agricultural property. We work with Qualified Intermediaries to execute these transactions flawlessly within the strict IRS deadlines.
Resolving boundary disputes, curing defective titles, and fighting adverse possession claims in court when ownership questions arise.
Executing Warranty Deeds, Quitclaim Deeds, and Trustee Deeds across Nebraska and Minnesota jurisdictions with clean, defensible documentation.
Get an attorney involved before you sign. Flat-fee pricing — you’ll know exactly what the review or drafting costs before we begin.
