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
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
The modern producing gas well is a sophisticated and complex piece of equipment. The basic well head itself consists of several meters, valves and other components, each of which is under constant stress and pressure. In...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
Let’s assume you signed a new oil and gas lease with XYZ Drilling in August 2018 (the “2018 Lease”). Your lease contains a “continuous drilling” clause which requires XYZ Drilling to commence a new well within ninety (90)...more
Our Oil & Gas Team parses a ruling from Texas that reminds courts to look at the entire contract, not just a favorite word or phrase. The parties disagreed about where along the pipeline royalty valuation should occur. The...more
In Evans Resources, L.P., et al. v. Diamondback E&P, LLC, two agreements left the terms “constructed” and “utilized” undefined. If the terms had been defined would the outcome have been different? Maybe. Should parties define...more
Contract construction cases are fact-specific, but one can take lessons of general application from all of them. Here are the takeaways from Jones Energy, Inc. v. Pima Oil & Gas, L.L.C....more
Major tax legislative updates occurred as part of the 86th Texas Legislature: Sales and Use Taxes - Marketplace providers (HB 1525) - Texas, and several other states, have enacted legislation that requires...more
What’s good for the goose is not always good for the gander, at least in some places. It appears that the North Dakota Supreme Court has adopted the minority “ Marketable Product Rule” in connection with a 1979 North Dakota...more
The Texas Supreme Court (“Court”) recently ruled in favor of Murphy Exploration & Production Company—USA (“Murphy”) in a dispute arising from the location of an offset well on the properties of Shirley Mae Herbst Adams and...more
As promised, here is a more in-depth analysis of the recent Supreme Court of Texas opinion in TRO-X LP v. Anadarko Petroleum Corp. ...more
In Murphy Exploration & Production Co. — USA v. Adams the Texas Supreme Court held that an offset well clause in an oil and gas lease did not require the lessee to drill wells calculated to protect against drainage. Four...more
Summary of S.B. 360 - SB 360 applies to flat rate royalty leases, i.e. leases for which the royalty is not "inherently related to the volume of oil and gas so extracted, produced, and marketed," and the conditions upon...more
Issues surrounding the legality of allocation wells in Texas have been percolating for some time, and lately we’ve heard of potential litigation. ...more
Should the sufficiency of reworking operations under the cessation-of-production clause of an oil and gas lease be limited to the producing well? Crystal River Oil and Gas, LLC et al v. Patton was a suit to terminate an oil...more