Batavia farmer settles $1 million corn lawsuit against Fermilab
A Batavia farmer who sought nearly $1 million in a lawsuit over approximately 1,400 acres of corn he grew on land leased from the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in 2015 recently settled it for about half that amount.
Bruce Nagel sued the Department of Energy facility seeking $952,000 - the estimated value of his crop - and punitive damages, claiming he had a contract to grow and harvest crops on lab-owned land, paying an annual fee for use of the property.
Fermilab countersued Nagel and the Elburn Co-Operative Co. and its owner, CHS Capital, saying Nagel breached his contract and lost rights over the crop in late October 2015. The corn was taken to the Elburn Co-Operative and priced at $834,782.27, according to court records.
The lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice in late August by Kane County Judge Edward Schreiber, meaning it cannot be refiled in the future, according to court records.
According to an exhibit in court records, $450,000 will be transferred from a trust account held by the Fermilab attorney to Nagel Farms. Nearly $485,000 will be transferred from the trust to Fermilab itself, and $350,000 will be transferred from the trust to CHC Capital.
Fermilab attorney Richard Van Evera, whose firm held the trust account, declined to comment on the settlement, saying the parties had a confidentiality agreement.
Kurt Vragel Jr., who is the lawyer for Nagel and Nagel Farms, refused to comment.
In Nagel's lawsuit against the Fermi Research Alliance, he argued he had contracted to cultivate up to 2,265 acres through 2016, paying a yearly fee to the government for use of the property.