In Mayo Found. For Med. Educ. & Research v. BP Am. Prod. Co. a United States District Court considered the circumstances under which a lessor can withhold its consent to assign an oil and gas lease....more
10/20/2020
/ Consent to Assignment ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Contract Terms ,
Lessor ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Leases ,
Mineral Rights ,
Oil & Gas ,
Operating Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Reasonableness Factors
The threat: You, the operator, are operating unprofitable wells where monthly costs exceed or barely equal revenues, making money on the fixed COPAS overhead charges. Your non-operators are going into the economic hole and...more
With the plunge in commodity prices many formerly profitable wells are now in the red, and we don’t know for how long. This is causing non-operators to question the bona fides of the operations … and of the operator, and to...more
Jatex Oil & Gas, L.P. v. Nadel & Gussman Permian, L.L.C. presents several teachable moments:
The Texas Property Owner Rule does not allow a non-expert testify on matters requiring expert testimony....more
9/25/2020
/ Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Fair Market Value ,
Joint Operating Agreement ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Rights ,
Oil & Gas ,
Property Owners ,
Revenue ,
Tortious Interference
San Miguel Electric Coop is a Texas nonprofit electric cooperative that owns and operates a power plant that supplies electricity to 38 Texas counties. After a four-week absence, they return to these pages, this time in DCP...more
Who pays for fluid containment in an oil field emergency? It depends on your contract and, we are told in Pearl Resources, LLC v. Charger Services, LLC, oil and gas industry custom....more
Devon Energy Prod. Co., et al. v. Sheppard, et al is your kind of case if you are in search of:
- A roadmap for slicing and dicing royalty calculations in myriad ways,
- Pretty good summaries of the Supreme Court’s...more
When Winston Churchill used this phrase in 1906 in his speech to the House of Commons, he probably did not have in mind the construction of language contained in a deed. Nevertheless, terminological inexactitude in drafting a...more
As we welcome around 1,100 new Texans a day, water has become our most precious natural resource. According to the 2017 State Water Plan, Texas’ population is expected to increase more than 70 percent between 2020 and 2070,...more
Quick answer: It depends on what the lease says. Last week featured a tug-of-war between a producer and the community in which it operates; this week in HJSA No. 3 LP v. Sundown Energy LP it’s the producer and the lessor....more
9/19/2019
/ Abandonment ,
Business Operations ,
Contract Terms ,
Forfeiture ,
Lease Termination ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Leases ,
Mineral Rights ,
Oil & Gas ,
Ongoing Operations ,
Rules of Construction ,
Well Drilling
In Town of Flower Mound v. Eagle Ridge Operating LLC, an operator’s injunction against enforcement of a local ordinance was dissolved. EagleRidge operates gas wells in the Flower Mound. A Town ordinance prohibits work on gas...more
9/12/2019
/ Appeals ,
Injunctions ,
Local Ordinance ,
Mineral Exploration ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Motion to Dissolve ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Real Estate Market ,
Variances ,
Water ,
Well Drilling
The answer depends on what part of “the oil business” you care about. The 86th Legislature produced a few, but not many, changes in laws affecting the business, (most going into effect on September 1). ...more
6/20/2019
/ Downstream Agreements ,
Drilling Waste Disposal ,
Emergency Alerts ,
Eminent Domain ,
Groundwater Management Plan ,
Independent Contractors ,
Midstream Contracts ,
Mineral Extraction ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Oil & Gas ,
Photovoltaic ,
Pipelines ,
Public Utilities Commission ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Royalties ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
Tax Credits
In Swift Energy Operating LLC v. Regency Field Services LLC, claims for damage to leased minerals allegedly caused by contamination spreading from an H2S-CO2 injection well were barred by limitations. When the cause of action...more
Welcome to today’s grab-bag of unrelated topics.
The climate avengers are clever in the way they demonize the industry. They give zero credit for technological advancement. Truth is, the industry’s use of technology is...more
Speedier than Jesse Owens in the ‘36 Olympics, Democrats railroaded the Colorado legislature passed, by party-line vote, Senate Bill 181, a new law that will have a profound effect on oil and gas operations in that state. It...more
4/9/2019
/ Climate Change ,
Energy Exploration ,
Energy Policy ,
Green New Deal ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Rights ,
Oil & Gas ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Rulemaking Process ,
State and Local Government ,
Well Drilling
The latest Fifth Circuit opinion in Seeligson v. Devon Energy Production, L.P. is the latest round in a class action that has been developing since 2014....more
3/19/2019
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Breach of Contract ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Commonality ,
Downstream Agreements ,
FRCP 23 ,
Gas Royalties ,
Implied Contract ,
Marketing Perspectives ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Oil & Gas ,
Predominance Requirement
The Colorado oil and gas industry breathed a collective sigh of relief when the state Supreme Court announced its unanimous decision in Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission v. Martinez. ...more
In 2016 Ridge contacted the McDaniels (Double Eagle’s predecessors) with an offer to “lease” their mineral interests in Winkler County. The McDaniels informed Ridge about a producing lease from 2004, and were assured that it...more
You’ve secured the right leases. You’ve drilled nice wells in the right locations. Now, will you pay the right royalty owners? Follow Devon Energy Production Company, L.P. v. Apache Corporation, to be sure that you do....more
Briggs v. Southwestern Energy is another way to say “chaos” in Pennsylvania. The Superior Court ruled that fracking may constitute a trespass when subsurface frac-fluid and proppants cross boundary lines and extend into the...more
In XTO Energy v. EOG Resources, a title dispute over the mineral estate in 1,653 acres in Atascosa and McMullen counties, Texas, the loser tried both, to no avail....more
4/24/2018
/ Contract Terms ,
Deed of Trust ,
Energy Sector ,
Foreclosure ,
Liens ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Mineral Leases ,
Mineral Rights ,
Oil & Gas ,
Real Estate Market ,
Transfer of Interest
What could go wrong when the well recovers two times its costs in nine months? Plenty, as we see in Dimock v. Sutherland Energy....more
There are specific requirements for proving that an oil and gas lease has survived past its primary term. Fail to hit them all when the lease is challenged at the courthouse, wand disappointment will be order of the day....more
Today’s “pay attention” edition begins with a quiz. What is the most important thing to read carefully:
a. Speed limit sign in small-town (insert name of Southern state).
b. Itinerary for that dream vacation, the...more
Let’s start with a little background: Under the Accommodation Doctrine an oil and gas lessee has an implied right to use the land as reasonably necessary to produce and remove the minerals, but must exercise the right with...more