Minnesota’s Riparian Protection and Water Quality Practices law, the so-called buffer law, was enacted in June 2015. Affecting an estimated 110,000 acres of land, much of it farmland, the law represents one of the most sweeping environmental regulations directly affecting Minnesota’s farmers. The law requires that landowners maintain buffers around certain waterways in the state....

Internships have been receiving special attention lately with the popular Robert Di Nero movie The Intern and a lawsuit brought against Fox Searchlight Pictures by former unpaid interns claiming compensation. Against this backdrop of entertainment and law, what is an internship? What are the expectations legally and from a work perspective? What is an internship...

Calculating a farmer’s income for child support or spousal maintenance is often the result of averaging income over several years. This makes sense when a farmer’s income is constantly moving up and down. Over the past few years, averaging the last three to five years has seemed appropriate for many farmers; and for some, a...

With the drawdown of the U.S. Military, many veterans are entering the workforce. Many public employers, and some private employers, have gone out of their way to hire veterans. While most of these are highly motivated and capable employees, there are some terminations from time to time. Minnesota Statutes section 197.46, the Veterans Preference Act,...

Minnesota legislators and legislatures often refer to even numbered years as “bonding” and odd years as “budgeting.” However, there is no constitutional or other legal provision requiring “bonding” vs. “budgeting” years. The informal distinction simply means that in odd years, the legislature hopes to pass a two year budget. In odd years, with the budget...

Minnesota business owners need to have a clear understanding of concepts such as budgeting, pricing strategies and cash flow in order to succeed. Some might think that they only need a business plan if they are going to seek equity or debt financing, but this is not the case. A business plan helps a new...

Most new commercial ventures fail within their first five years, and entrepreneurs in Minnesota and around the country are frequently warned that taking action without meticulous planning beforehand could be a recipe for disaster. However, some of the most successful business owners in America built their fortunes by ignoring words of caution and taking bold...