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During Iowa’s 2023 Legislative Session that ended Thursday, May 4, legislators passed a number of bills impacting agricultural producers and rural landowners. Read more for a review of the highlights.
On May 25, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court significantly narrowed the definition of “waters of the United States.” Sackett v. EPA, No. 21-454 (2023).
After the probate court set aside a 2016 will for lack of testamentary capacity and undue influence, the same executor submitted the decedent’s 2012 will to probate.
California’s Proposition 12 is here to stay...unless Congress decides to weigh in.
An energy company began replacing a substantial portion of components in wind plants it owned and operated. However, the county assessor continued to value the property the same for property tax purposes.
The Iowa Court of Appeals found that the defendants, a father and son, violated their fiduciary duty to a family farm corporation. Father was president and a board member of the corporation.
A landowner brought a lawsuit against his neighbor claiming that his property experienced manure runoff after the neighbor applied manure on a nearby field.
On March 8, 2023, the Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the division of a farm partnership’s alleged assets and liabilities after the death of one of the business partners.
With unclear terms and intentions, two parties attempted to negotiate the sale of a farm property.
The Iowa Supreme Court affirmed that a lessee could exercise their renewal option under the rental contract by only giving written notice even though a later paragraph stated that the rental payment would be due when the renewal option was exercis
The Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the probate court’s allocation of attorney fees and court costs arising from litigation under which the trust received a $159,250 settlement.
The Iowa Court of Appeals examined the distribution of property during a divorce where one spouse had used inherited and gifted property to fund the purchase and repay debts associated with the marital home and farmland.
The Iowa Court of Appeals examined the distribution of farmland property during a divorce when a premarital agreement waived “any right or interest in the real property of the other,” and the wife argued that marital assets were used to pay down d
The Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of two neighboring landowners’ claims against each other in a water drainage dispute.
The decedent passed away intestate in Belize. He owned real estate in both Polk County and Belize, several financial accounts, and a life insurance policy. The decedent’s adult daughter petitioned to open an estate in Polk County. His surviving spouse, who is not related to his daughter, filed a motion to dismiss the petition claiming that the decedent had lived in Belize for many years before his death and, as a result, the probate court lacked jurisdiction.
In a recent case, the Iowa Supreme Court considered whether Iowa’s tax-sale redemption notice procedures violated a landowner’s due process rights. The landowner argued that the law was unconstitutional because it did not require personal service, only notice by mail. The Court ruled that due process does not guarantee a property owner actual notice before the government takes the property. Instead, the landowner is entitled to a method of service “reasonably calculated” to provide timely notice.
A recent case from the Iowa Supreme Court highlights the importance of carefully completing and reviewing beneficiary designations for IRAs and other retirement accounts.
In a January 27, 2023, opinion, the Iowa Supreme Court found that a joint tenancy with rights of survivorship was converted to a tenancy in common when one of the owners transferred her undivided interest to a revocable living trust.
On January 9, 2023, the Tax Court found that a ranch-owning couple was entitled to $421,503 in deductions over three years for expenses claimed on their Schedule F, even though they had sold most cattle associated within a few months after the pur
On January 25, 2023, the Iowa Court of Appeals reversed the district court’s order denying damages stemming from a replevin action of farm equipment.
