Kale R. Van Bruggen
I was lucky enough to be raised on my family’s corn, soybean, and wheat farm in rural southeast North Dakota. You might find it “emusing” that we even raised emus for several years under the business name “Dutch Emu Acres” (“Wooden shoe like to see our emus?”). Growing up farming with family taught me patience, responsibility, respect for natural resources, a solid work ethic, and the value of perseverance. My parents still farm south of Litchville and I enjoy the opportunity to help cultivate and harvest when I am home.
Farm advocacy (we called it “agvocacy”) was an important part of my upbringing and shaped my choice to attend Drake University Law School, where I completed the Food and Agricultural Law Certificate program and graduated with highest honors. I bring my passion for farm “agvocacy” into my work representing farmers, landowners, and rural, local governments on litigation, regulatory and transactional matters primarily focused on water resources.
Experience
Kale Van Bruggen is a shareholder in the firm. He concentrates his practice in:
- Water Law
- Agriculture
- Environment and Natural Resources
Kale primarily represents clients on regulatory and litigation matters, including NRCS certified wetland determinations; Clean Water Act compliance; wetland banking and mitigation; compliance with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service waterfowl production area easements; and Minnesota’s Wetland Conservation Act and public waters, public waters wetlands, and buffer laws compliance. Kale also represents public drainage authorities in North Dakota (water resource districts) and Minnesota (counties and watershed districts) on matters pertaining to establishment, construction, and management of water drainage systems and water quality enhancement projects. In the courtroom, Kale has represented farmers and landowners on many cases pertaining to water and drainage law and appeals of local government orders.
Kale graduated from North Dakota State University with a degree in Business Administration. He received his law degree from Drake University Law School, Order of the Coif. While attending law school, Kale served as the note editor of the Drake Law Review and clerked for Justice Brent Appel of the Iowa Supreme Court. Kale joined Rinke Noonan in 2012.
Bar Admissions:
- North Dakota
- Minnesota
- Iowa
- U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota
Community
Kale is a founding member and Vice President of the James Arthur Albert Foundation, a nonprofit organization that awards scholarships for Belize students to cover the costs of attending high school. The Foundation also builds classrooms in the Toledo District of Belize.
Kale has served as a Director on the Board of Farm Commons, a nonprofit organization that provides legal resources and training to small, family‐operated, farm‐to‐consumer businesses. He is currently an active member of the American Agricultural Law Association, the Stearns Benton Bar Association, and serves as Vice President on the MSBA Agricultural and Rural Law Section Council.
Paralegals
jfincher@rinkenoonan.com
320-251-6700
Practice Areas:
Agricultural Law
Environmental Law
Water Law
Drainage
rswingley@rinkenoonan.com
320-257-3866
Practice Areas:
Agricultural Law
Environmental Law
Drainage
Water Law
kbundy@rinkenoonan.com
320-251-6700
Practice Areas:
Agricultural Law
Environmental Law
Drainage
Water Law
Resources
Related Articles
- How Far Does the Clean Water Act Reach? - by Maury Noonan
- Iowa Drainage Law Basics and Drainage Agreements - by Maury Noonan
- Why is watershed phosphorus loading so stubbornly persistent? - by Joe M. Bischoff, Wenck
- Swampbuster: Does Your Project Qualify for an Exemption? - by Maury Noonan
- Minnesota Drainage Law - by John Kolb and Kale VanBruggen
- John Kolb and Kale VanBruggen on Drainage Law on AgPhd Radio - by John C. Kolb and Kale R. Van Bruggen
- Buffer Strips On Minnesota’s Waterways And Ditches - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- The Clean Water Act and Wetlands: EPA and Army Corps Rule on “waters of the United States” - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- Contractor Liability: Wetland Drainage and Pollutant Discharge - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- The Clean Water Act and Wetlands: Redeposit vs. Incidental Fallback - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- The Clean Water Act and Wetlands: Expansion of Federal Jurisdiction - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- NRCS Certified Wetland Determinations: Things You Should Know - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- North Dakota Tile Drainage: Common Questions and Answers on Permit Requirements - by Kale Van Bruggen and John Kolb
- Co-Authored Article: Agriculture’s Fate Under Climate Change: Economic and Environmental Imperatives for Action
- Presentation: Wetlands Presentation to MN Surveyors