EAST LANSING, Mich. — One of the events at this year’s Michigan Ag Expo will be a series of legal presentations; sessions are scheduled to take place at the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) tent on the Ag Expo grounds.

Several provisions of the law passed in 2010 regarding estate planning are scheduled to expire next year. These include the $5 million exclusion, which is scheduled to revert to $1 million. Also, the estate and gift tax rate will rise from 35 to 55 percent.

Without an extension, the exemption will no longer be portable between spouses. Experts say that although portability is good, it is not a panacea and has some drawbacks. This session is supposed to help property owners plan their estates. Join Michael Fraleigh of Fraleigh Law Firm at 1:30 p.m. each day of the Expo to discuss planning strategies in this volatile tax environment.

Another topic to be presented at the Expo is federal regulations and atrazine. Environmentalists have targeted the popular herbicide as unsafe and say it’s polluting groundwater.

Atrazine is used heavily in Michigan. Scott Steiner from Rhoades McKee Attorneys and Counselors will present the latest information on this product and how the regulatory environment might affect growers.

Another topic on tap is trucking law and HB 5228. According to the legal eagles, state laws regulating commercial trucks and trailers beginning at 10,001 pounds are bad for business.

This presentation is designed to help drivers know which trucks are exempt from the rules and which require U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) numbers, a commercial driver’s license, a health card and other requirements. John Klees from Rhoades McKee will be on hand 11:30 a.m. July 18 to fill everyone in.

And then there’s mediation – many disputes can and do arise when a landowner or farmer gets a loan, has to deal with wetlands issues or has to comply with one or another farm program. One way of resolving such disputes is mediation.

A farmer who has a dispute with a USDA agency can ask for help in the form of a trained mediator, who may be able to help the parties involved avoid expensive litigation. At 2:30 p.m. each day of the Expo someone will be on hand to explain the Michigan Agricultural Mediation Program.

Expo hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. July 17-18 and 9 a.m.-3 p.m. July 19. Admission to the grounds and parking at Farm Lane and Mt. Hope Rd. are free.