Hog Farmer Entitled to Damages

Rochester hog farmer entitled to damages because of lawsuit, court rules
By DEBRA LANDIS
THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER
Posted Sep 11, 2009 @ 11:30 PM

ROCHESTER, IL —
A Rochester hog farmer is entitled to damages stemming from a lawsuit filed by opponents of his large-scale hog operation that delayed its construction, the Illinois 4th District Appellate Court decided this week.

Robert Young had appealed a ruling of Sangamon Circuit Judge Leslie Graves that he was not entitled to damages. Young previously successfully challenged an injunction request by the Rochester-Buckhart Action Group, which wanted to block expansion of his hog farm.

“The court ruled that we were right, and RBAG was wrong. Now, we will be asking RBAG to pay for the harm that was done,” Tom Immel, Young’s attorney, said Friday.

A hearing in Sangamon County court regarding the amount of damages will be scheduled later. Immel said Young will seek more than $300,000, including legal expenses and income Young and his wife, Sandra, lost while fighting the lawsuit.

The appellate court, in a ruling Tuesday, said Young was “engaged in a lawful business, and the planned expansion of his hog farm was put on hold at plaintiff’s (RBAG’s) behest. Read More

It seems that many times, a lawsuit is filed with the intention to stifle a time sensitive project. And in many of those instances there are very few consequences to the suing party. We see it a lot when it comes to logging, especially after forest fires. There is a very limited amount of time to harvest the burnt timber and some will tie up projects in court long enough for the wood to go to waste. In this case, it appears that this farming family will be able to recoup some of the losses they incurred when the building of their new hog barn was delayed in court. It’s important that there are consequences for filing a lawsuit and losing.

Losing Home to Raise Hogs

Legal fight over hog operation forcing farmer to sell his home
But Robert Young expects to ship first pigs this spring

By DEBRA LANDIS
THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER
Posted Jan 13, 2009 @ 12:05 AM

ROCHESTER — Robert Young spent the better part of the last year and a half fighting a lawsuit aimed at stopping him from building a large-scale hog farm between Rochester and Buckhart.

Now, because of the expense of the legal fight, he’s being forced to auction off his house.Young thought the start of 2009 would see him finally starting the 3,600-head operation and collecting thousands of dollars in damages from the Rochester Buckhart Action Group, or RBAG, a not-for-profit corporation of about five area residents who sued to try and stop him.

“I got my hopes up,” Young, of Rochester, said Monday, citing decisions by a state appellate court and the Illinois Supreme Court overturning Sangamon County Circuit Judge Leslie Graves’ injunction blocking the hog farm.

With the injunction lifted, work is progressing on the hog barn, and Young said he anticipates the first shipment of pigs this spring under an agreement with Cargill Corp.

Meanwhile, though, he and his wife, Sandra, are facing foreclosure on their 37-year-old home, about one-fourth of a mile from the hog operation. Read More

Unfortunately, situations likes these usually turn into a game of who has the biggest pile of money. These “concerned neighbors” didn’t have much to lose, but Young has everything to lose, especially his livelihood. A livestock producer should not have to lose his house to defend his ability to produce food and fiber for 144 of his neighbors. Best wishes to Robert Young. If it weren’t for dedicated people like Young, we would not have the safest, least expensive food supply in the world. And shame on you RBAG.