Example #1 - Multiple Siblings Inherit A Farm:
A Maryland farmer had a family farm that has been in the family for generations. Out of his 11 children only two stayed and worked on the farm. When the farmer died and the will was read, the children discovered that he had left each of them equal ownership of the farm. Some of the siblings wanted ownership of the farm and others did not. Some wanted the farm to stay in the family and others did not care. The siblings argued for months, until one of them called ACReS for assistance. ACReS assigned two mediators, who contacted all 11 siblings and got their agreement to be part of a mediation session, which was proposed to take place the day of a family wedding. The three-hour mediation session took place in the church basement of the wedding venue. By the end of the session, they were able to come up with several options that satisfied everyone and the family went on to thoroughly enjoy the wedding celebration!
Example #2 - Farmers Lease Terminated with Due Notice:
A landowner had leased several acres of land to a couple who are farmers. The lease agreement was a handshake deal. This arrangement went well for several years, until the irrigation system went down. The landowner told the farmers that he would repair it, but the repair did not happen. As a result, the farmers did not have the harvest they were expecting and were late on their rent. The landowner then served them with written notice that he was not renewing their lease. The farmers contacted ACReS because they felt it was unfair, given the inoperable irrigation system, that they be held to the lease terms. In addition, they believed that they should have been given at least 6 months' notice of the landowner's intent to cancel the lease, rather than 3 months. They wanted to negotiate an extension to the full 6 months to have the opportunity to get the crops they currently had in the ground harvested. The mediation session was quite heated, but the farmers were able to demonstrate that Maryland law required 6 months' notice of intent to cancel an agricultural lease. To avoid having to go to court, the landowner agreed to the lease extension, in writing, and agreed to have the irrigation system repaired by a specific date.
Example #3 - Farmers Access to Fields Blocked:
Homeowners contacted ACReS to ask for mediation with the owners of the farm next door. The land that the homeowners purchased 6 months before had been a working farm. After moving in, the homeowners had installed a gate across the roadway that led up to their house. The gate could be controlled by remote control. They were now involved in a contentious dispute with their farming neighbors, who claimed that the gate was blocking access to some of their fields. They said that they had shared the driveway with the former owners for years. The homeowners countered that the roadway is on their property, and they have the right to do with it as they please. ACReS provided mediation. The participants were able to communicate in this process and the homeowners agreed to give the farmers a remote-control device of his own to access his fields.
Example Four- Farmers Facing Forclosure:
An USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) loan officer referred a case to ACReS involving a large overdue farm loan. The loan had been accelerated to foreclosure, and the owners – two brothers - requested mediation as the first step in the appeals process. The mediation was an opportunity for the brothers to come to an agreement on what needed to be done to bring the loan current and avoid the foreclosure. The mediator helped the brothers communicate better, which then enabled them to work as a team with the FSA office. In addition, because the countdown to foreclosure was halted while the mediation was being arranged and conducted, the brothers were able to use the additional time to raise the money needed to make the required payment by the deadline.
