agri-law summit
The OSU Agricultural & Resource Law Program is thrilled to host the Agri-Law Summit 2026 in partnership with the Ohio State Bar Association's Agricultural Law Committee. The day-long conference will be on May 21, 2026 at Retreat 21 Venue & Tap House near Marysville, Ohio.
Agriculture plays a major role in Ohio’s history and economy, and agricultural businesses have unique legal needs. The Agri-Law Summit brings attorneys together to focus on those legal needs. In addition to practical legal skills, we'll discuss new and pending legislation and court cases, as well as emerging legal issues for agriculture. The goal is to grow our competency in meeting the legal needs of agricultural clients, both now and as new needs arise in the future.
Because we also want to grow the next generation of agricultural attorneys, we're offering full scholarships for the conference to current and recently graduated law students, with support from the Paul L. Wright Endowment in Agricultural Law at Ohio State.
The Summit program features a variety of speakers. Here's our line up for the day:
Ohio Department of Agriculture Updates
- Robin McGuire Rose, Chief Legal Counsel, Ohio Department of Agriculture
Court Cases and Legislation We’re Watching
- OSBA Ag Law Committee and OSU Ag Law Team
Farm Financial Stress: Are We There Yet?
- Bruce Clevenger, Farm Management Specialist, OSU Extension
- Eli Earich, Attorney, Barrett, Easterday, Cunningham & Eselgroth
- John Essman, Assistant Vice President and Lender, Kingston National Bank
Hazards Ahead: Farm Tax and Labor Law Myths
- Jeff Lewis, Attorney, OSU Ag & Resource Law Program
Farm Estate Planning Strategies for Non-titled Assets and Long-term Care
- Evin Bachelor, Attorney, Wright & Moore Law Co. LPA
- Robert Moore, Attorney, OSU Ag & Resource Law Program
How Does the Farm Service Agency Affect Our Clients?
- Gregory R. Flax, Attorney, Martin, Browne, Hull & Harper
The New Frontier for Agriculture: Dealing with Data Centers, Carbon Capture, and Competition for Land
- Peggy Kirk Hall, Director, OSU Ag & Resource Law Program
- Chad Endsley, General Counsel, Ohio Farm Bureau Federation
- Andrew Wecker, Attorney, Wright & Moore Law Co. LPA
The program has been submitted to the Ohio Supreme Court for 5.5 hours of Continuing Legal Education credit. We've also built a social aspect into the program, providing attendees time to engage with one another during a breakfast, lunch, and a post-conference social at Retreat 21's beautiful Tap House.
For more information and to register, visit go.osu.edu/agrilawsummit. Current and recent law students should contact Peggy Kirk Hall at hall.673@osu.edu for scholarship information.
The OSU Agricultural & Resource Law Program is excited to host Agri-Law Summit 2025 in partnership with the Ohio State Bar Association's Agricultural Law Committee. The day-long conference will be on August 14, 2025 at Retreat 21 Venue & Tap House near Marysville, Ohio.
Agriculture plays a major role in Ohio’s history and economy, and agricultural businesses have unique legal needs. The Agri-Law Summit brings attorneys together to focus on those legal needs. In addition to practical legal skills, we'll discuss new and pending legislation and emerging legal issues for agriculture. The goal is to grow our competency in meeting the legal needs of agricultural clients, both now and as new needs arise in the future.
Because we also want to grow the next generation of agricultural attorneys, we're offering full scholarships for the conference to current and recently graduated law students, with support from the Paul L. Wright Endowment in Agricultural Law at Ohio State.
The Summit program features a variety of speakers, from national to local levels and from practitioner, association, and academic arenas. Here's our line up for the day:
The State of Ohio Agriculture: Updates from ODA
- Tracy Intihar, Asst. Director, Ohio Department of Agriculture
Emerging Issues Facing Agriculture
- Ryan Conklin, Wright & Moore Law Co. LPA; Chad Endsley, Ohio Farm Bureau Federation; Harrison Pittman, National Agricultural Law Center and Barry Ward, Ohio State University
Managing Farm Risk with Insurance
- Ryan Geiser, Nationwide Agribusiness and Jeffrey K. Lewis, OSU Ag & Resource Law Program
Legal Needs for Value-Added Ag Businesses
- Rob Leeds, OSU Extension/Leeds Farm and Susan McDonald, Gottlieb Johnston, Beam & Dal Ponte/McDonald’s Greenhouse
From Field to Firewall: Sowing Cybersecurity
- Merisa K. Bowers, Ohio Bar Liability Insurance Co.
Ohio Legislative Roundtable
- Evan Callicoat, Ohio Farm Bureau Federation; Ellen Essman, OSU Ag & Resource Law Program and Milo Petruziello, Ohio Ecological Food & Farming Assoc’n
Tax Incentives for Ag and Conservation Easements
- Ellie Ewing, Captina Conservancy
Advising New Farmland Owners
- Robert Moore, OSU Ag & Resource Law Program
Drafting Tips for Operating Agreements
- Morgan Lyles, Stebelton Snider LPA
The program has been approved for 6.25 hours of Continuing Legal Education credit, including 1 hour of professional conduct credit. We've also built a social aspect into the program, providing attendees time to engage with one another during a breakfast, lunch, and a post-conference social at Retreat 21's beautiful Tap House.
For more information and to register, visit https://farmoffice.osu.edu/agri-law-summit. Current and recent law students should contact Peggy Kirk Hall at hall.673@osu.edu for scholarship information.
Final plans are underway for the first annual "Agri-Law Summit," co-hosted by our OSU Agricultural & Resource Law Program and the Ohio State Bar Association Agricultural Law Committee. The day-long continuing legal education program will be Thursday, August 14, 2025, at the Retreat 21 Venue and Taphouse near Marysville, Ohio.
"Growing Our Competency in Counseling Agriculture" is the theme for the event, reflecting the goal of building expertise among the attorneys who work with agricultural businesses. The conference will begin with a focus on emerging issues for agriculture, featuring discussions with Tracy Intihar, Assistant Director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture and Harrison Pittman, Director of the National Agricultural Law Center. We're finalizing speakers for additional topics on the agenda, which will include:
- Guiding farm businesses on disaster risk mitigation
- Legal needs for value-added businesses
- Advising new farmland owners
- Drafting tips for LLC operating agreements
- Tax incentives for agricultural easements
- Cybersecurity management
Through the Paul L. Wright Endowment in Agricultural Law at Ohio State, law students and new law graduates can receive a scholarship to attend the Agri-Law Summit at no cost.
A final agenda and registration information for the Agri-Law Summit will be available soon on the Farm Office website at farmoffice.osu.edu/agri-law-summit.
