2004 Articles

CAFOs and air emissions By Michael C. White November 2004 Until recently, many commercial agricultural activities in the United States have been exempt from certain requirements of federal and state environmental laws.

Editor’s note By Jeffrey A. Mollet February 2004 This newsletter contains a proposed Mission Statement for our Section. As you will see therein, your Section Council is recommending that the newsletter be published six times per year.

Employment interviews—don’t ask any questions? By Jeffrey A. Mollet August 2004 Tips to help you find the right employee.

Estate and gift tax changes for 2004 By Mike Drone April 2004 Several changes in the estate and gift tax law go into effect in 2004.

Illinois Supreme Court narrows scope of landowner protection under the Illinois Recreational Use Act By A. Bryan Endres April 2004 In December 2003, the Illinois Supreme Court decided Hall v. Henn, 208 Ill. 2d 325, 802 N.E.2d 797 (2003), which held that the Recreational Use of Land and Water Areas Act2 ("Recreational Use Act") offers protection from negligence liability only to those landowners who open their property to the general public for recreational use.

New law on farm vehicle weight By Jeffrey A. Mollet November 2004 In August, Illinois Governor Blagojevich signed into law Senate Bill 2327 (625 ILCS 5/15-301 et seq.), which was effective immediately.

Nuisance and zoning issues that might be coming to a courthouse near you By Jeffrey A. Mollet February 2004 It seems that nuisance actions and zoning issues are the current hot topic for real estate lawyers practicing where rural America and the so-called advanced civilization of the big city meet.

Please don’t step on my grave By John W. Damisch February 2004 As a boy, when we visited our ancestor's at the cemetery we believed that it was bad luck and bad manners to walk on someone's grave.

Proposed Agricultural Law Section Council mission statement February 2004 The Scope and Correlation Committee of the Illinois State Bar Association has asked each section to develop a mission statement to define ways to provide more relevant and useful services to section members.

The use of lis pendens notices By Dennis R. Bordyn August 2004 Many of us have seen the use of a lis pendens in situations where it just didn't seem right. Perhaps in conjunction with a divorce, by a realtor trying to collect a commission or as a purposeful impediment to a proposed sale of the land in an effort to collect money.