If you drive around Pennsylvania, you are likely not going to encounter a “For Sale” sign offering a cavern in the ground. But the voids, pore spaces, and cavities in the subsurface can be quite valuable now and in the...more
8/13/2025
/ Appellate Courts ,
Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Deeds ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Leases ,
Mineral Rights ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pennsylvania ,
Property Owners ,
Subsurface Conditions ,
Surface Owner ,
Texas ,
TX Supreme Court
Does the Texas Supreme Court’s Decision in Cactus Water Services v. COG Operating Provide Guidance About Lithium and Rare Earth Minerals Ownership in Pennsylvania?
Lithium demand is expected to continue to increase as...more
8/1/2025
/ Contract Disputes ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Energy Sector ,
Fracking ,
Land Owners ,
Lithium Batteries ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Leases ,
Mineral Rights ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pennsylvania ,
Property Owners ,
Rare Earth Metals ,
Texas ,
TX Supreme Court ,
Wastewater ,
Water ,
Water Rights
In a June 13, 2025 decision, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court held that a municipality impermissibly granted conditional use approval to an oil and gas well pad and interconnect facility on tax lots that were already...more
6/25/2025
/ Appeals ,
Conditional Use Permit ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Interconnections ,
Judicial Authority ,
Local Ordinance ,
Municipalities ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Wells ,
PA Supreme Court ,
Pennsylvania ,
Permits ,
Property Owners ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rural Development ,
Zoning Laws
Pennsylvania Senate Bill 102 Moves Forward-
On May 12, 2025, Pennsylvania Senate Bill 102 was referred to the Pennsylvania Senate Appropriations Committee. The draft legislation had originally been referred to the...more
5/28/2025
/ Energy Policy ,
Impact Fees ,
Municipalities ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pennsylvania ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Utility ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State and Local Government ,
Zoning Laws
In a February 7, 2025 decision in Simon v. Sunoco Pipeline LP, No. 2015-3302 (Wash. Cty. February 7, 2025), the Court of Common Pleas of Washington County, Pennsylvania concluded that Sunoco Pipeline LP and Sunoco Logistics...more
2/24/2025
/ Eminent Domain ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
FERC ,
Infrastructure ,
Jurisdiction ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pennsylvania ,
Pipelines ,
Property Owners ,
Public Utility ,
State and Local Government
Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1346 which was introduced at the end of the 2023-2024 legislative session. Its aim was to restrict the distribution of unconventional gas well fees to municipalities whose zoning ordinances...more
2/12/2025
/ Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Municipalities ,
Natural Gas ,
New Legislation ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pennsylvania ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Utilities Commission ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
State and Local Government ,
Zoning Laws
On November 7, 2024, several Pennsylvania state senators from oil and gas producing regions introduced Senate Bill 1346 of 2024, which proposes to change the way that revenues from Pennsylvania’s unconventional well fee are...more
12/12/2024
/ Distribution Rules ,
Environmental Policies ,
Fees ,
Homestead Exemption ,
Local Ordinance ,
Municipalities ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Wells ,
Pennsylvania ,
Revenue ,
Surface Water ,
Well Drilling ,
Zoning Laws
On September 6, 2024, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania denied dueling summary judgment motions concerning the interpretation of a royalty provision in Chambers v. Equinor USA Onshore...more
If you have bought or sold property in Pennsylvania, you have likely encountered the Oil, Gas and/or Mineral Rights/Interests Disclosure© form prepared by the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors as part of the sales...more
Leases for solar energy facilities offer property owners the potential for a predictable, long-term revenue stream. But, because of the potential decades-long duration of a lease for solar energy facilities, things like...more
In its May 22, 2024 non-precedential memorandum decision in Frye v. Penn View Exploration, Inc., 919 WDA 2023 (Pa. Super. Ct. May 22, 2024), the Pennsylvania Superior Court found that an oil and gas lease’s shut-in royalty...more
In Plum Borough v. Zoning Hearing Board of the Borough of Plum,____ A.3d ____ , No. 1198 CD 2022 (Pa. Commw. Ct. Jan. 29, 2024), the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court vacated the grant of a special exception to Penneco...more
Questions about the zoning of oil and gas development operations have persisted in Pennsylvania for years. Now, cryptocurrency and data mining operations may create new wrinkles in long-running disputes about oil and gas...more
Although historically viewed as a waste, produced water that comes to the surface as part of the oil and gas production stream now potentially has value. Produced water can be recycled and reused as part of hydraulic...more
A company in New York is attempting to secure leases to allow it to produce oil and gas and to use the leased land for a carbon dioxide injection program for long-term storage. Does this herald a new type of development that...more
In Cromwell v. Anadarko E&P Onshore, LLC, 676 S.W. 3d 860 (Tex. App. 2023), the Texas Court of Appeals confirmed the automatic termination of an oil and gas lease, and simultaneously rejected the argument that a forfeiture...more
In an October 10, 2023, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania dismissed a gas driller’s declaratory judgment lawsuit involving an oil and gas lease in the SWN Production Company, LLC v. Blue...more
The potential for repurposing old oil and gas wells for renewable energy raises a number of complex legal issues in Pennsylvania. In recent years, the federal government has been exploring renewable energy generation by using...more
The recently filed Hobe Minerals Limited Liability Company v. Bonanza Creek Energy Operating Company, LLC, et al lawsuit in a Colorado trial court challenges whether intermittent cryptocurrency mining can maintain an oil and...more
Before signing oil and gas leases, landowners should pay close attention to lease provisions asking for warranties and representations about prior oil and gas development on the land. These provisions are often buried in a...more
The United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania’s recent decision in Bootes v. PPP Future Development, Inc., C.A. No. 22-154 (W.D.Pa. March 21, 2023) denying a gas company’s request to dismiss oil...more
A dual purpose oil and gas lease transitions into its secondary term, and remains in its secondary term, if oil and gas is produced from the leasehold or if the leasehold is used for oil and gas storage. See, Smith v....more
If carbon in the atmosphere is a problem, and that atmospheric carbon resulted from burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas, then a simple solution is to remove the carbon from the atmosphere and to put it back into the...more
Solar farm developers who do not enter into surface use agreements with Pennsylvania oil, gas and mineral owners (and their lessees) could create legal jeopardy for their solar farm projects. All surface developments in...more
This is a familiar yet troubling question. Imagine you own 135 acres in Washington County. You have received offers from several oil and gas drillers but have not yet signed a lease. Your neighbor, however, did sign a lease...more