Landowners informed on rural topiocs at Luling Foundation field day

By MONETTE TAYLOR | South Central Texas Edition

A big crowd gathered for the recent Luling Foundation's field day to hear information on many agricultural and rural topics. -- Staff photo by Taylor

June 9, 2005 - On May 19, an overflowing crowd gathered at the Luling Foundation to celebrate the 78th annual field day. There were numerous booths to visit as well as a farm tour which included information on topics such as stockpiled forage, water resource management, predator control, and Riparian conservation opportunities.

The crowd gained information on landowner liability from Judon Fambrough, senior lecturer and attorney at law, Texas Real Estate Center at TAMU.

Fambrough first talked about water rights and property owners. He said that if producers negotiate and sign a groundwater lease, there are no statues to protect you. Before signing a lease, he suggested getting in touch with him by email (judon@recenter.tamu.edu) with any questions.

Fambrough also talked about residents who open their land up to hunters, such as deer leases. He said each landowner needed to decide if the benefit of the hunting income would outweigh the risk of having people on private property. He said there were four common law classifications of land visitors.

While the detailed information was useful to most, it seemed to overwhelm 3-year-old Thomas James Roberts. -- Staff photo by Taylor

The first group would be invitees (paying guests), and each one should be "warned and made safe" concerning any problems they might incur while on the land. The second group he called "licensees," or social guests who do not pay. Again, it is important to "warn and make safe" the guests by letting them know of any dangerous conditions of which your are aware. The third group mentioned was trespassers. A sign on the fence or at the boundary marker that warns of a "no trespassing" rule should be sufficient, but the use of purple paint on the land boundary trees or fences means the same thing. Finally, having children visit depends upon the ages of the children, as far as rules go, but the "warn and make safe" is always applicable. While children over 16-years-old may be old enough to go on land, alone, it benefits the landowner if an adult is accompanying them. Children from 1 to 7 must have an adult accompanying them (to protect the landowner from liabilities.) Again, it is recommended that the landowner get in touch with a lawyer to make sure what will make his property safe with visitors, or visit online at www.recenter.tamu.edu.