This article focuses on the state of Texas law regarding wellbore rights and various related issues raised by transactions involving such rights (and other similar lease severance issues) and provides some practical tips to...more
Briggs v. Southwestern Energy Production Company, LLC is good news for Pennsylvania mineral owners bringing claims for subsurface trespass by fracking. In 2018 in “Briggs 1”, the Briggs family sued SWN for subsurface...more
Allocating subsurface risk is always a key point of negotiation between owners and contractors in engineering, procurement, and construction (“EPC”) contracts, given its potential price and schedule impacts. Parties can...more
There are numerous approaches that can be used during an environmental investigation to evaluate subsurface conditions. These can vary based on the media requiring investigation and the ultimate project goals. Information...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (“Court”) addressed in a June 3rd Opinion an issue arising under a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA” or “Superfund”) cost...more
The oil and gas industry in Pennsylvania attained a narrow victory after the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania endorsed the application of the rule of capture, the century-old legal principle shielding drillers from trespassing...more
In a case of first impression that drew interest across Appalachia, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court determined on January 22, 2020, that the rule of capture applies when natural gas is extracted through hydraulic fracturing...more
On November 30, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit issued an opinion in Eclipse Resources - Ohio, LLC v. Madzia, affirming the lower court’s grant of summary judgment to Eclipse Resources in all respects. ...more
Action Item: The Texas Supreme Court annunciated two critical points in Lightning Oil Co. v. Anadarko E&P Onshore: (1) unauthorized interference may be a trespass only when it impacts the mineral lessee’s ability to exercise...more
We know that in Texas the mineral owner has the right to explore for and produce the minerals. What does that leave for the surface owner? In Lightning Oil Company v. Anadarko E&P Onshore, LLC the Texas Supreme Court tells us...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: With the EPA adding the consideration of vapor intrusion in its Superfund site investigations, hundreds of sites that previously would not rank high enough to qualify for listing on the National Priorities...more
How many of your mineral conveyances are described like this: … all of Sellers’ right, title and interest in and to (a) the oil, gas and other minerals in, to and under the lands … ONLY INSOFAR as such oil, gas and other...more
Two new opinions show the Second DCA continues to hold that if an insurance policy providing sinkhole coverage authorizes the insurer to withhold payment for subsurface repairs until the policyholder presents a signed...more
Unanticipated subsurface conditions can greatly increase the time and cost of construction. When faced with such conditions, contractors understandably look to place responsibility for the additional costs on the owner....more
On Tuesday, March 3, twelve underground injection control (“UIC”) wells in California’s Central Valley, specifically in Kern County, were shut down in order to protect subsurface drinking water from potential contamination. ...more
For any government contractor that has had a differing site condition claim denied despite relying on a government geotechnical report about the subsurface conditions of the project site, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the...more