On March 20, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia dismissed Sonda v. West Virginia Oil and Gas Conservation Commission for lack of standing. The lawsuit was brought by mineral interest owners...more
On January 31, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (the Fourth Circuit) reversed and remanded the opinion of the U. S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia (the District Court), holding...more
On January 24, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania held that Act 85 of 2019, which permits drilling horizontal oil and gas wells across existing drilling units, is not unconstitutional....more
On November 3, 2022, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf signed Act 153 of 2022, which revises the Oil and Gas Lease Act’s provisions on required disclosures accompanying payments made to royalty owners from unconventional oil and...more
On Saturday, March 5, 2022, the West Virginia Legislature passed S.B. 650, and on Wednesday, March 9, 2022, it passed S.B. 694.
After lengthy debate, the Legislature passed S.B. 694, which authorizes the West Virginia...more
At an April 23, 2019 public hearing, the Chairman of the West Virginia Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (“OGCC”) announced the Commission’s intention to introduce an emergency rule for setback/spacing standards for...more