Sustaining the Farm Means Succession Planning

[Link]A Message from Kelly Wilfert

Farming often demands that we live in the moment. Do what must be done today and, when we inevitably run out of hours, put off what can wait until tomorrow. But while we are busy farming, life sneaks up on us. Births, deaths. marriages, divorces. Farm families soldier on, doing what must be done in those moments to sustain the farm and the family.

How many times can a plan be patched together before the screws no longer hold? Now, if you're a good mechanic, you might be thinking, "I bet you'd be surprised." Perhaps you're thinking of a particular piece of equipment that has been patched together more times than you'd like, but it still gets the job done.

A good farm succession lawyer is like a good mechanic. They have many tools and can patch together a farm succession plan in many ways.

The constant first step is diagnosing the problem(s). Farm families must answer a variety of questions to successfully transition the farm.

What are we trying to fix? Who gets what? Who will be in charge? Who will work together, and how? How will the farm's and the family's financials be impacted? What are the legal 'problems' that need to be 'fixed?'

Farm families are unlikely to definitively answer these questions in just one meeting with one another. Instead, try to simply diagnose the problem(s). Where does everyone agree that a change is needed? Where are there still challenges? Write down these issues to remind you where the mutually-agreed-upon problems lie. Your notes will also help your attorney and other advisors understand the unique goals of your farm. Answering these questions will help you answer one overarching question: where do we want to be in the future, and what is preventing us from getting there right now? In short, what do we need to fix in our farm succession plan?

As farm families, we don't need to select the tools or do that legal work on our own. Instead, like that good mechanic, an attorney will help identify the legal tools to solve the farm's 'problems.' When a farmer brings a problem to a farm succession attorney - whether it's a change in distribution, probate, estate tax, long term care, or an entire farm succession plan - the lawyer will reach into their tool chest to see how they might be able to patch up a transition plan.

Unfortunately, if it's "go time" (e.g., the middle of planting season for the mechanic or dealing with an unexpected death for the lawyer), family tensions may be high and limited tools may be available. Instead, just like winter maintenance on equipment gives us time to order parts or bring in a specialist, planning ahead for farm succession allows farm families to take the time they need to select the right tools and create a structured and sustainable plan for transition.

Farms can start by scheduling regular meetings with each other to talk about the questions above. Where are the problems? What should farm ownership look like in the future? If farms wait too long to start talking about maintenance on farm succession plans, they might not have access to all the tools needed to sustain the farm business and the farm family.

[Link]Wilfert is a proud member of the Manitowoc County Farm Bureau and WisGO Team. This article originally appeared in the 2025 June | July Rural Route.