News
Ross Pifer Presents on Right to Repair with the National Agricultural Law Center
On September 16, 2020, Ross Pifer gave a presentation on behalf of the National Agricultural Law Center. The presentation was entitled, Right to Repair Statutes: Overview, Issues Presented, and Current Status of State Legislation, and is part of an ongoing webinar series with the NALC. In this webinar, Ross provided an overview of the Right to Repair issue, explaining the arguments for and against these statutes. In the second half of the webinar, Ross discussed the specific elements comprising current legislation and proposed legislation.
Center Staff Provides Webinar Series on the Effects of COVID-19 on Agriculture
On August 11, 2020, the Center presented the fourth in a series of webinars discussing COVID-19 Ag Legal Updates via Zoom, where Brook Duer was joined by Penn State Extension Educator Brian Moyer. They discussed third-party liability claims arising from COVID-19 transmission from person-to-person contact with customers and other persons with whom one does business. This webinar was the fourth in a planned series addressing legal developments related to the pandemic’s impact on agriculture. To see a recording of this webinar and our other webinars, subscribe to our YouTube channel or click on the links below:
Center Director Provides Comments for State Impact Regarding Royalty Lawsuit
On July 17, 2020, Ross Pifer was quoted in an article published by State Impact Pennsylvania entitled Are Gas Royalty Owners Buyers or Sellers? In a Court Fight Over Royalties, The Answer to That Question Could Make All the Difference to Landowners. This article discusses an ongoing case before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in which the court is considering whether to apply Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law to oil and gas leases. The lawsuit alleges that landowners were deceived by misleading tactics employed by Chesapeake Energy and Anadarko Petroleum […]
Center Participates in Webinar on Agricultural District Programs
On July 15, 2020, Brook Duer presented in the National Agricultural Law Center’s webinar, Agriculture District Programs: The First 50 Years. Will They Survive Another 50? Brook described the development of various forms of agricultural district programs and the benefits conferred on lands located within; outlined the states which have enacted such laws; compared various concepts and benefits within 16 states’ programs; and briefly discussed the future of such programs in the changing world of the 2020s.
Center staff frequently participate in the National Agricultural Law Center’s webinar series. More of […]
Court Cites Expert Testimony of Center Director in Oil & Gas Case
On June 19, 2020, the Lawrence County Court of Common Pleas issued an opinion in the case of Chito v. Pulaski Twp. Zoning Hearing Bd., (Docket 10467 of 2015), in which the court denied a substantive challenge to the township’s regulation of oil and gas drilling. In reaching this conclusion, the court cited the expert testimony of Ross Pifer on the issue of the historic compatibility of oil and gas drilling and agricultural communities in Pennsylvania.
Center Staff Featured in American Agricultural Law Association’s Agricultural Law Update
This week, center staff were featured in two sections of the American Agricultural Law Association’s Agricultural Law Update (Update). In the Update’s new Practice Tips section, staff attorney Jackie Schweichler wrote an article titled, When Litigation Doesn’t Fit – Try Agricultural Mediation. The Update also spotlights 2020 Penn State Law graduate Travis Buck for his first-place award in AALA’s 2019 Student Paper Writing Contest. AALA board member Ross Pifer presented Travis with the award for Travis’s article, Capper-Volstead & Output Restrictions: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
Center Staff Attend Virtual 7th Annual Mid South Ag & Environmental Law Conference
On June 7th and 8th, 2020, Center Staff attended the two day 7th Annual Mid South Ag & Environmental Law Conference hosted online by the National Agricultural Law Center. The conference addressed a variety of agricultural law topics with national importance including agricultural lending, environmental regulations, crop insurance, and more. Presentations were provided by Greg Cole, President and CEO of AgHeritage Farm Credit Services; Wes Boyer, Partner, Boyer Terry; Autumn Veazey Price, Director, Government Relations, Land O’Lakes, Inc.; Michael Cooley, Partner, Allen Wellman McNew Harvey, LLP; Amanda Jones Tollison, Partner, Butler Snow; […]
Ross Pifer Presents in the Ag & Food Law Update Webinar
Center staff also prepared a publication entitled […]
Staff Attorney Brook Duer Joins Webinars with Penn State Extension
Over the past few weeks, Staff Attorney Brook Duer was a presenter at three webinars conducted by Penn State Extension. On April 9, he presented during the webinar entitled COVID-19 Stimulus Benefits for Sole Proprietors and Independent Contractors. On April 10, he presented at the webinar entitled COVID-19 Stimulus Benefits for Dairy Industry Farmers and Small Business. On April 22, he presented at the webinar Solar Leasing for Landowners.
Center Welcomes the Director of Child Nutrition Programs for Pennsylvania to the Agricultural Law Podcast
On March 9, 2020, the Center published a Special Episode in the Agricultural Law Podcast. In this, special episode we were delighted to welcome Vonda Cooke, State Director of Child Nutrition Programs for the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Ms. Cooke joins Audry Thompson to discuss the 2012 changes to the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs and the potential impacts of the recent January 23, 2020, proposed rule, Simplifying Meal Service and Monitoring Requirements in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs.
This episode, Special Episode #1. School Lunches with Vonda Cooke, can be found on most podcast […]
