Whether talking ranch and farm leases, or family estates, undocumented
pacts leave individuals unprotected, as evidenced by the countless
testimonies out there. Here are six documents we urge producers and
landowners to have in writing:
1. Farm and ranch leases.  Make sure both parties are on the same page
when it comes to a lease. No matter who you are, how long you’ve been
leasing and how good of friends you are, put it in writing.
It doesn’t have to be complicated or adversarial. Sit down and do it together if
you want to, but have something that spells out, ‘Here’s what we’re going to
do if X, Y or Z happens.’
A good example would be that of partnering with older landowners. Let’s say
a bunch of ag land is going to transfer from this generation to the next in the
next 10 to 20 years, and that handshake deal you’ve got with Grandpa, who’s
never given you any hassle, won’t be with Grandpa anymore. It’s now going to
be with Grandpa’s kids or his grandkids or Grandpa’s new wife, right after
Grandma died. That happens a lot. If you don’t have a written lease, you’re not
protected.

For tenants, they need to record the lease in the courthouse deed
records. This is especially important if the land sells during the term of the
lease.  If you’ve got a lease on a piece of property, if you buy with notice —

meaning you knew about the lease — the lease continues. You just step into
the shoes of the selling landowner.
Here are three ways to give notice:
 An actual notice is when you tell the buyer a lease exists. It’s often
included in the contract.
 A constructive notice is when a reasonable person should have known
a lease existed. Don’t rely on this.
 A record notice is a document filed in the deed records. Whether the
buyer ever looks, they’re deemed to be on notice.
Tenants concerned about having their lease as a public record can do a
memorandum of lease. It just needs to say what property it is, who is leasing it
and the terms of the lease. Both parties need to sign it, notarize it, file the deed
records, and now you’re protected if that property sells.
2. Easements. If you are crossing someone else’s property to get to your own,
you have got to get that in writing.
People will say that in Texas, there’s no landlocked property. That isn’t true. If
you’ve got a landlocked piece of property and you can’t get your neighbors to
agree to give you access, there are some legal options you can take. You’ve
got to go to court, file a lawsuit, prove certain elements that can be pretty
tricky to prove, and maybe the court will grant you access. If you can’t
successfully prove the required elements, you’re landlocked and you can’t get
to that property. And you can’t borrow against it, because nobody is going to
lend money on property that has no legal access.
A landowner will also have a difficult time selling that property unless they get
a cash buyer who’s willing to buy landlocked property.
Also be warned against handshake agreements. The best thing to do is get it
in writing. Also, record it in the deed records.

If Grandpa owns the property and he’s crossing his neighbors [property], and
Grandpa doesn’t record his easement in the deed records, when they have
different landowners and there’s no easement, the handshake deal doesn’t
matter. Also, people will say, ‘I’ve been using it for 30 years. I can
automatically keep using it.’ No, it’s not that simple.
Easements can be in perpetuity, as in indefinite, or for a specific time period.
Either way, it is recommended to be specific about how the easement will
work and how many people can use it.
They can be drafted for a specific time period, specific person or a specific
purpose. It is suggested that you contact a lawyer for guidance.
3. Wills.  By virtue of being involved in ag operations, you have a complex
estate. You can’t use the wills on the internet for $39.99. So please, it is well
worth it to get a will drafted by an attorney.
The money you will spend having a lawyer craft a will is a fraction of what
your family is going to spend to take the estate through probate if you don’t
have one. A will in Texas can either be handwritten or typed. Verbal wills are
not recognized as valid.
The money you spend getting your will set up is going to be minuscule
compared to what happens if you have to go through an intestate probate or
if there’s some sort of contested situation when you die. If you want to save
money, spend it now. Make sure your assets go where you want them to, and
you’ll save money in the long run.
4. Advanced health care directive. This is another document for end-of-life
planning purposes. It’s an instruction to your doctor about whether or not you
want artificial life-sustaining treatment in the event you are diagnosed as
terminal or irreversible.
In Texas, a statutory form is available online and is easy to complete. Fill in the
blank. You can either have it notarized or signed by two witnesses, and you’re

good to go. It’s a big gift to your family to know your exact wishes, if this
difficult decision has to be made.
5. Medical power of attorney. This document lets you choose the person who
will make medical decisions on your behalf if you cannot make the decisions
yourself. Like an advanced health care directive, fill-in-the-blank forms are
available online.
6. Durable power of attorney. For this document, you designate the person
who would act on your behalf, if you cannot, in financial or business matters. A
statutory form is available online.