Life at LDM | Attorney Spotlight, David A. Changstrom
David A. Changstrom, Attorney What is your definition of success? This is a tough question and I do not have a snappy definition! I think about this a fair amount and my mind has changed many times. Right now, success to me is about being happy with both my outcomes and the means I took to achieve them. At work, that means that I want to both solve [...]
Partner Mike Storey Persuades Nebraska Department of Insurance to Overturn its Own Decision
Partner Mike Storey recently persuaded the Nebraska Department of Insurance (“NDOI”) to overturn its own decision to deny an LDM client a producer’s license. A producer’s license would permit the client to sell, solicit, and negotiate insurance in the state of Nebraska. Challenging the decision, Mr. Storey presented documentary and testimonial evidence during a contested hearing at the administrative offices in Lincoln, Nebraska. After receiving and analyzing the [...]
Structuring Buy-Sell Agreements for Farmers, Ranchers & Other Business Owners Post Connelly v. United States
In Connelly v. United States,1 the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes Nebraska) ruled that life insurance proceeds received from company-owned life insurance (COLI) following the death of a shareholder must be considered a corporate asset in valuing the shares of the corporation’s stock held by the estate of the deceased shareholder. The ruling resulted in a circuit split with the Ninth and Eleventh Circuits, which previously ruled that [...]
Mitigating Pesticide Drift Damage Through Crop Insurance
Despite all the technological improvements and increased regulations, pesticide application is not always perfect. Pesticide drift, aka off-target application, aka chemical trespass, resulting in crop damage and yield loss continues to create claims and litigation between neighbors. In many cases, proving whether a chemical trespass may be straightforward. However, proving economic losses are generally more difficult and may encompass losses that extend beyond the crop year. No matter what it [...]
What to Do if You Believe Your Property Tax Valuation is Too High
Beginning in June, the final valuation for properties in Nebraska will be released. After the final valuation are released, the window for protesting the valuation begins, and it runs through July 1st. The valuation of property is important to taxpayers because it is the bases that is used to determine a taxpayer’s property tax liability. The increasing valuations leave a lot of people wondering: What can I do if I [...]
LDM Proudly Recognizes Attorneys Selected as 2024 Super Lawyers and Great Plains Rising Stars
Lamson Dugan & Murray LLP is pleased to announce five attorneys have been selected to the 2024 Great Plains Super Lawyers list in addition to attorney Erin K. Artz who has been selected as a 2024 Great Plains Rising Star. Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections [...]