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Simon Morton worked long hours farming on the farm all his life for “modest pay” while his sister pursued a successful business career and was discouraged from working on the farm. Their father died in 2001 and mother in 2016, the latter leaving her share of the farm to Simon’s sister, cutting out Simon.
It was hugely encouraging to read, on The International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, of the positive impact that the Gay Farmer Helpline offers to an under-represented and often isolated group. I deal regularly with divorce cases with a farming connection – be it acting for a land owning husband, for a spouse who […]
The Farmer’s Guardian writes this week about the particular tendency within farming families to avoid tackling succession planning either at all, or until it almost too late. In the FG’s fabulously named Podcast: Have I Got Moos for You, rural & agricultural agent Heather Wildman highlights the fact that farmers often see themselves as different […]
Excellent news for UK farmers today as the government announces a £20 million fund from the European Regional Development Fund Programme to provide grants to SMEs, including farmers, for legal and other professional support to help post-lockdown recovery. As a family lawyer I have seen a huge increase in the last month in the number […]
Amazing to think that the first Oxford Farming Conference was held in 1936 and is now back for its 84th year (not quite as good as Hedges’ 230 years of existence but who’s counting?!). This is such an exciting event in the farming calendar and I’m always interested in what people have to say about […]
Next week (6th and 7th November) the Farm Business Innovation show is on the NEC and I will be speaking on Wednesday afternoon about rural land issues. Tickets are free and it promises to be an exciting two days looking at farming the UK and different options for diversification and future planning. In these difficult […]
Its been an interesting year for farming family disputes. The case of Shaw V Shaw [2018] EWHC 3196 (Ch) involved a son, Clive Shaw, who claimed in the High Court for a share of the family farm having been disinherited by his parents who left the estate to their two daughters. The farm itself constituted […]
Only yesterday I was getting excited about Oxfordshire farmers using throw-away plastics as an innovative new material for building animal housing and today I am even more excited to learn that I can buy eco-friendly ice-cream from North Aston Dairy. It really is inspiring to hear about the choices we are making in Oxfordshire to […]
With environmental protection concerns taking ever greater prominence and an increasing public demand to reduce plastic waste how nice to see that Oxfordshire is at the forefront of change once again. Not only are we home to the first “plastic free” Waitrose on the Botley Road but Fairytale Farm in Chipping Norton has used pioneering […]
It would have been hard to miss the coverage of the Royal christening at the weekend but amongst all the column inches you might be forgiven for having missed Hedges’ commentary on the christening in the national press.. Our very own Rachel Carrington-Matthews has been providing expert advice and guidance on what it means to […]