Agriculture Law

The McKinstry Company’s close and longstanding relationship with the agricultural industry lets us respond quickly and effectively to our clients’ needs.

Scotland’s agricultural sector produces products for the Scottish economy worth £2.9 billion a year, making up a large percentage of Scotland’s food export industry. However, like any sector, there are many challenges to be faced. While many can be tackled directly by those working in the industry, some need to be handled by external professionals from other sectors, such as law and finance.

From tenant farmers to major landowners, The McKinstry Company helps clients meet their legal obligations and protect their interests. We regularly advise on:

• Business structures and family partnerships
• Succession
• Diversification
• Land management, including access and servitudes
• Tax planning
• Buying, selling and leasing

Farm purchase and sale

We have been helping clients buy and sell farms for generations. The process can be complex, so experience and understanding from your legal team are essential.

We will work with your accountants and the bank to ensure the contract for sale is right for you and that everything runs smoothly. We understand the importance of such a sale to you and your family, and so all of our farm purchase and sale work is handled by a highly experienced member of our team.

Servitudes

Rights of access over your land can cause a number of problems, particularly where they have not been drawn up properly. Rights of servitude can also be complicated and require skill and experience to navigate.

You may be offered a standardised agreement by a service provider giving them very broad rights to use your land, for example, to run cables, carry out maintenance and rights of way. However, such broad rights can restrict the control you have over your land and interfere with your business, so it is essential to seek specialist advice.

Agricultural Tenancies

The law of agricultural tenancies is very complex. However, our lawyers have excellent experience advising on all aspects of agricultural tenancies for both landlords and tenants. We can assist with; Short Limited Duration Tenancies (SLDTs), Limited Duration Tenancies (LTDs), Grazing Lets, Rent Reviews, succession, and tenancies termination.

Renewables developments and infrastructure schemes

We can assist with all renewables and infrastructure development elements, including interference with utilities, contract variations, negotiation of renewable energy deals, and related contractual legal issues.

Rural disputes

Like every other sector, agriculture has its own set of distinct challenges that can result in disputes. However, land and rural property disputes can often be complex and require expert experience and legal expertise to be resolved properly.

The McKinstry company have varied experience in helping clients with disputes relating to:

• Appeals of planning decisions or compulsory purchase orders advice
• Tenancy disputes in agricultural holdings
• Disputes concerning the structure of agricultural, farming and rural businesses
• Succession disputes including succession to leases and Wills and contentious estates.
• Regulatory appeals, including rural support payments compliance

Family Business Succession

There are a range of business structures available to those in the agricultural sector. From partnerships, limited companies to sole traders, we can advise on the best business structure to suit your needs and ensure everything is in place to support whatever structure you decide on.

We can advise on how to hand the farm or business down to the next generation, including providing advice and assistance with tax and retirement planning and long-term care needs.

A Comprehensive Legal Service

We understand that our farming and agriculture clients need assistance with a wide range of legal services. That is why we are proud to be lawyers for life and can help you with employment, family law, wills and power of attorney.

We have experts in each service area ready to provide specialist advice for your specific needs and circumstances.

One Step Ahead

Our agriculture team stay up to date with developments affecting our clients and can provide you with specialist advice on dealing with upcoming changes.

We can advise you on agricultural and community tenant’s rights to buy, changes to Scotland’s land registration system, and the Scottish Governments land reform proposals.

For straightforward and practical advice that works for you, contact us today.

Why choose The McKinstry Company?

We are dynamic and forward-thinking. We are a Law Firm for Life.

As a firm, we never lose sight of the client’s importance and the client’s desired outcome from our services.

Our service provision approach is to afford our clients the breadth and depth of expertise that they will require to guide them successfully through all aspects of their professional and personal life. Our goal is to generate and maintain strong and lasting client relationships rather than a transactional approach to the work we undertake.

It is our role whenever presented with a problem or an issue by our clients to guide them to the outcome they are seeking to achieve. This proactive and “can do” approach is what sets us apart from the crowd.

Agriculture Services