In Ammonite Oil & Gas Corp. v. R.R. Comm’n of Tex., the Texas Supreme Court held that the Railroad Commission (the “RRC”) did not abuse its discretion in denying a “muscle in” application under the Texas Mineral Interest...more
The Texas Supreme Court will review a state regulator’s rejection of 16 applications submitted by Ammonite Oil & Gas Corp. (“Ammonite”) to force pool its mineral estate with adjacent wells operated by EOG Resources Inc....more
Ohio- Tortious Interference with Business Relations Emanuel’s LLC v. Restore Marietta, 4th Dist. Washington No. 2023-Ohio-147. In this appeal, the Fourth Appellate District affirmed the trial court’s decision to grant...more
The takeaway from Hahn v. ConocoPhillips Company is that in Texas a NPRI holder may not diminish his rights by ratifying pooling of an oil and gas lease unless there are provisions explicitly purporting to do so....more
Louisiana’s compulsory pooling scheme seeks to balance the interests of individual landowners and oil and gas operators to promote responsible development of natural resources. Because of compulsory pooling, operators are not...more
Ammonite Oil and Gas Corporation v. Railroad Commission of Texas illustrates the difficulties faced by lessees attempting to force-pool a tract under the Mineral Interest Pooling Act. In this case, the applicant Ammonite...more
“Ratification is not a game of ‘gotcha’”, said the Texas Supreme Court in BPX Operating Co. v. Strickhausen. The Court, in a 5-4 opinion, addressed the standard for an oil and gas lessor’s implied ratification of an...more
While the basic investment infrastructure needs to be developed, impact investment is becoming a stable and sustainable alternative for institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals. Private Equity funding is well...more
The first article for professional publication that I wrote was an article about using offshore trusts in non qualified deferred compensation planning. I called the article the Rastafarian Rabbi Trust. The article was...more
Ginnie Mae’s newly imposed restriction on repooling of reperforming forborne loans yet again penalizes servicers acting as essential service providers in the continuing efforts to protect mortgagors facing financial hardship...more
While much of the attention by regulators has been focused on the coronavirus (COVID-19) response and CARES Act/FFCRA guidance, they have not forgotten about the SECURE Act’s introduction of pooled employer plans (PEPs)...more
Did the lessor’s deposit of royalty checks for production from a pooled unit that she contends was improper ratify the improper pooling? In Strickhausen v. Petrohawk et al, a jury will have to sort out the answer....more
Governor Polis signed the highly controversial S.B. 181 into law on April 16, 2019. Why is this important to you? S.B. 181, also known as “Protect Public Welfare Oil and Gas Operations” has been referred to as “landmark...more
As discussed in our March 13 post..., Senate Bill 181, introduced on March 1, proposed significant changes to Colorado’s long-standing oil and gas regulatory system. After a number of amendments from Senate and House...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini analyzed a case brought by plaintiffs against Bank of New York Melon (BNYM) alleging that the firm breached its trustee duty to act prudently after the event of default. The court...more
Coloradoans continue to see fights over oil and gas development in the news. Following last month’s Colorado Supreme Court decision in COGCC v. Martinez, mineral owners in the Wildgrass neighborhood of Broomfield, Colorado,...more
On April 2, 2018, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed a proposed residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) class action against U.S. Bank, in its capacity as trustee ("U.S. Bank" or...more
As we reported previously, the Bakery & Confectionery Union and Industry International Pension Fund (B&C Fund) has been underfunded for years, with actuaries estimating that the B&C Fund will become insolvent by January 2030....more
On August 21, 2017, the Tax Court issued its opinion in two companion cases Benyamin Avrahami and Orna Avrahami v. Commissioner, and Feedback Insurance Company, Ltd. v. Commissioner, 149 T.C. No. 7, holding against the...more
If you are a year-end U.S. public company, your second fiscal quarter has recently come to an end, which means that it’s time to calculate your public float to see if your reporting status has changed. Here are a few things...more
Recently, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia clarified an important issue for the oil and gas industry in Gastar Exploration, Inc. v. Contraguerro, affirming West Virginia’s adherence to the contract theory of...more
On 31 March 2017, the EU Insurance Block Exemption Regulation n° 267/2010 (“IBER”) will expire and will not be renewed. Therefore, the types of cooperation it covered will fall under the general rules of competition law. ...more
On March 16, 2016, California’s Fourth Appellate District issued its opinion in Saterbak v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Case No. D066636, finding that a borrower does not have standing to challenge an assignment of her Deed of...more
The March 2016 pooling of Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) debentures was priced at 2.507%, which is near the all-time record low rate. This is reduced from the previous semi-annual pricing of 2.829% for SBIC...more
On February 18, 2016, the California Supreme Court issued its eagerly anticipated decision inYvanova v. New Century Mortgage Corporation, et al., Case No. S218973, finding that a borrower has standing to state a claim for...more