Fourth Annual Mid-South Agricultural and Environmental Law Conference

Hosted by the Agricultural & Food Law Consortium

June 8-9, 2017

Memphis, Tennessee

University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law

Thank You to Our Sponsors!

University of Mississippi Center for Continuing Legal Education

University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law

Agriculture in the Mid-South is uniquely impacted by changes and developments in state, federal, and international laws and policies. This program is part of a long-term effort to provide relevant and timely agricultural and environmental legal research and information to attorneys, lenders, accountants, tax consultants, students and other agricultural professionals involved in the agriculture and aquaculture industries in the southern U.S. The goal is to provide resources in the form of presentations and content, as well as to foster dialogue about the range of agricultural, food, and aquaculture issues for the Mid-South agricultural community.

Led by the National Agricultural Law Center, the Agricultural & Food Law Consortium is a national, multi-institutional collaboration designed to enhance and expand the development and delivery of authoritative, timely, and objective agricultural and food law research and information. In that capacity, Consortium members have organized and are hosting this conference.

Conference Agenda:

Thursday, June 8

6:30 – 8:30 pm: Welcome Reception at The Rendezvous Restaurant, 52 S. Second Street, Memphis, TN

Join us for a “BBQ & Beer” reception at one of downtown Memphis’ most famous restaurants (cost included in registration)

Friday, June 9

7:30 a.m.: Registration

8:00: Welcome & Announcements

8:15 – 9:15:         Farm & Ranch Estate Planning: Daddy’s Gone, How Do We Move On?

Christy Bartee, Batson Nolan (Clarksville, TN)

Vance Cook, Attorney at Law (Princeton, KY)

9:15 – 10:00:       Ag Lending in a Down Economy: Ag Liens, Secured Transactions and Best Practices

Jeff Peterson, Gray Plant Mooty (St. Cloud, MN)

Greg Cole, President and CEO of AgHeritage Farm Credit Services

10:00 – 10:15:     Break

10:15 – 11:00:     Ag Lending in a Down Economy (con’t) –

Jeff Peterson, Gray Plant Mooty (St. Cloud, MN)

Greg Cole, President and CEO of AgHeritage Farm Credit Services

11:00 – 12:00: USDA Conservation Program Compliance: Pitfalls and Pointers – Grant Ballard, Ark Ag Law, PLLC (Little Rock, AR)

12:00 – 1:00:      Lunch (provided) – Networking

1:00 – 2:00: Considerations for Legal Ethics: “When my Picker Ain’t Picking” and Other Tales from the Farm – Robert Serio, Ark Ag Law, PLLC (Clarendon, AR)

2:00 – 2:15:        Break

2:15 – 3:15:        Compensatory Mitigation and the Future of Ag Land Use – Kerry L. McGrath, Hunton & Williams LLP (Washington, DC)

3:15 – 4:00:        Agricultural & Environmental Law Update for the MidSouth

Rusty Rumley, Senior Staff Attorney, National Agricultural Law Center, University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture

Alexandra Chase, Law Fellow, National Sea Grant Law Center, University of Mississippi School of Law

Catherine M. Janasie, Senior Research Counsel, National Sea Grant Law Center, University of Mississippi School of Law

Peggy Kirk Hall, Director, Agricultural & Resource Law Program, The Ohio State University

Ross Pifer, Director, Center for Agricultural & Shale Law, Penn State Law

Moderator: Harrison Pittman, Director, National Agricultural Law Center