Yorkshire farmer and grower Fred Gooder has been re-elected as chairman of the NFU Legal Board.
Chris Cooper, who farms on the Kent/Surrey border and who has been a Member of the Chartered Institute of Accountants for 34 years, is the newly elected vice chairman.
Mr Gooder (54) will continue to drive forward the NFU Legal Assistance Scheme (LAS), a discretionary award scheme established in 1987. More than 1,000 applications are received each year from farmers and growers throughout the country asking for financial support with disputes.
Mr Gooder said: "With the experience of dealing with a variety of farming disputes from our subscribers, the Legal Board and a dedicated team of advisers understand their problems and are always ready to listen, guide and provide the necessary information needed to assist with an application and the resolution of a dispute.
"This is a unique 'handholding service' offered to support people who often for the first time find themselves embroiled in the legal process.
"Members of the NFU Legal Board have to be lateral thinkers. We need to come up with good decisions in what are often very complex circumstances."
The LAS scheme makes financial awards in excess of £1 million each year towards professional fees incurred by applicants with more than 90 per cent of NFU member farmers and growers subscribing to the scheme. Underpinning the Scheme are considerable financial reserves. Support is available for a wide range of disputes including contract, tenancy, employment, professional negligence, judicial reviews, planning appeals, Trading Standards and Environment Agency investigations etc.
The Scheme has recently supported various actions against the Government in relation to the Single Payment Scheme, pre-movement testing, standard valuation tables, as well as planning appeals against the use of polytunnels.
