Agriculture

The granddaughters of a farmer have lost their shares in his farm because of complications that arose when their father died without making a Will. The grandfather had died in 1992, leaving behind a wife and four children. His Will stated that the farm was to be left to his wife and two of his sons as tenants in common. The Will added that in order to receive their share…

“Welcome to the latest edition of our newsletter.  We live in ‘interesting times’, and our job as lawyers is to guide you through them and to help you avoid the pitfalls along the way. Please excuse me for giving a huge congratulations to our whole team, including the unsung support staff, on having their skills and service recognised nationally – more on that below.  I hope you will find that…

ONE of Cumbria’s leading legal firms has appointed a new director, as its farming and agriculture department moves from strength to strength. Mark Jackson becomes the youngest member of Cartmell Shepherd’s board at the age of 35, bringing the number of top table representatives to nine. With a desire to focus on traditional values whilst implementing the most up-to-date legal practices, he is looking to further grow the agriculture and…

“Welcome to the first edition of our Agriculture Newsletter.  I hope you will find them relevant and useful.  We aim to give you a consistent and excellent service, and keeping you updated forms part of that.  Cartmell Shepherd has a strong and growing agricultural team, with expertise that is recognised nationally.   Our job is to find solutions to your problems, on time and at a sensible price – if we can…

Lambing season is a joyous, if tiring, time for many sheep farmers. It is the product of a long hard year of work. However with the NFU Mutual reporting that the increasing numbers of livestock attacks is costing the agriculture sector an estimated £1.2 million, it is important that farmers know the rights that they have to receive compensation. With 60% of dog walkers admitting to letting their dog roam off…

THE focus of the agricultural world was tuned into a unique event which tackled challenges and opportunities in the sector against the backdrop of an uncertain post-Brexit economy. More than 125 people packed into The Shepherd’s Inn at Rosehill, Carlisle, for the Future Proof Farming event, which was a collaboration between four major organisations. Legal firm Cartmell Shepherd joined forces with accountants Armstrong Watson, The Cumberland Building Society and The…

By Jonathan Carroll Director and Head of Agriculture A married couple have succeeded in having a restrictive covenant modified to allow them to build more than one house on part of their land. The couple had bought the land together with a farmhouse in 2001 for £600,000 from a college.  They then obtained planning permission allowing them to convert two outbuildings, the “Modern Barn” and the “Old Barn”, into a single…

By Jonathan Carroll, Head of Agriculture  Yet again a farming family dispute has led to huge legal costs, when a decent partnership agreement would have prevented it for a tiny fraction of the sums lost. The Wild family farmed Beard Hall Farm from 1965, which was owned by dad, Ben.  Ben and his wife Jean brought their son, Malcolm, into the partnership in 1978 when he was just 16, but…