Coauthors Sahrish K. Soleja and Lydia WebbIf you are a royalty owner and have questions about how your claim is likely to be treated when your lessee/operator goes into bankruptcy in Delaware, In re MTE Holdings LLC is a significant case.
Historically, royalty claims have been treated as funds placed in trust because they
Co-author Brittany BlakeyLet’s begin with a question: Master service agreements (“MSA’s” in the trade), once agreed upon, often remain in force for years. As time passes and circumstances change, the parties amend, sometimes losing sight of the original details. Was Stingray Pressure Pumping, LLC v. In re Gulfport Energy Corporation the result of forgetfulness
Co-author Brittany BlakeySometimes writing too many alternatives into an oil and gas lease invites confusion … which provokes litigation … which results in disappointment for somebody … or everybody.
For example, the central issue in Vermillion FC, LP v. 1776 Energy Partners, LLC was the effect of a well-tract designation pursuant to a retained
Resistance was futile for defendants opposing a temporary injunction sought by a party armed with a FERC Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity that includes condemnation rights under the Natural Gas Act. In Venture Global Gator Express v. Land et al., Venture Global sought to condemn land in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, and a preliminary injunction for immediate possession of the property.
The NGA requires that the party seeking to condemn be unable to acquire the property by contract or unable to agree on compensation to be paid. Defendants, Capt. Zack’s Myrtle Grove Properties and ESB Louisiana Opportunities (who held an Option to acquire certain rights) challenged the characterization of a portion of the proposed servitude as temporary instead of permanent and accused Venture Global of not negotiating in good faith.
The right to condemn
Continue Reading Louisiana Federal Court Allows Injunctive Relief Under FERC Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
Co-author Marcus FettingerUnder the Fair Labor Standards Act, what is required for an employee to be exempt from overtime pay? Ordinarily, it’s a guaranteed minimum salary. As the Department of Labor has explained, being paid on a “salary basis” means an employee regularly receives a predetermined amount of compensation each pay period on a weekly, or less frequent, basis. The predetermined salary cannot be reduced because of variations in the quality or quantity of the employee’s work.
That seems straightforward, but it took the Fifth Circuit three rounds of deliberations to nail it down. The entire panel of the Court recently reconsidered a 2020 opinion in Hewitt v. Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. In its majority opinion, 12 of the 18 judges held that a daily rate can qualify as a salary if, and only if, the employer pays a minimum of $684 per week regardless of the amount that the employee works and a “reasonable relationship” exists between the minimum salary and the total amount paid.
Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Tells the Oil Patch That a Day Rate is Not a Salary
Most bills filed in each legislative session fail. For the most part we are thankful for that. But today we summarize a few that survived while you weren’t paying attention. As usual, there are winners, losers, and rainouts.
HB 2730 beefs up the “Landowners’ Bill of Rights” in eminent domain negotiations and proceedings. It amends
I prepared this post before Ida. It might now be perceived as cynical, or unsympathetic to the plight of those affected in South Louisiana and the Northeast. Is the intensity of hurricanes exacerbated by global warming? Some say it is; some say it isn’t. Regardless, what to know and do about climate change
Co-author David LeonardMcFarland Land & Cattle, Inc. v. Caprock Solar I, LLC considered what is the required under New Mexico law to establish a public prescriptive easement, and brings to life the full meaning of “100 feet of bad road”.
The facts
A state road runs along section lines that divides property owned by
In Lexington Land Development LLC v. Chevron Pipeline Company et al, a Louisiana landowner’s suit for damages to land alleged to have been caused by oil and gas operations failed to survive exceptions of prescription and the subsequent purchaser rule.
The facts
In 1959 the Hoffman heirs granted a mineral gas lease on 343 acres in East Baton Rouge Parish to Chevron’s predecessor. Shell Pipeline owns and operates a pipeline across the property. Hoffman also granted surface leases to Chevron. In 1962 the surface leases expired and in 1963 Chevron relinquished its rights in the mineral lease except for three production units. The lease was assigned to Stone Petroleum and, in 1991, to Zinn Petroleum. Lexington purchased the property in 2005 from the Hoffman heirs for development of a subdivision.
Lexington sued Chevron, its successors, and Shell in 2007 after being notified of a rupture in the Shell pipeline. After adverse rulings, Lexington obtained assignments of rights from the Hoffman heirs and amended its petition.
Liberative Prescription
Continue Reading Louisiana Land Damage Claim Can’t Survive Prescription and Subsequent Purchaser Rule
Lollygag: To fool around and waste time; dawdle. As in, “I lollygagged for 15 years after filing my suit and obtained a less-than-optimal result.”
Gramwich Oil and Gas Corporation et al v. Meng addressed claims for lease termination, repudiation, laches, cessation of production, and failure to produce in paying quantities. The facts are dense and the savings clause at issue is sui generis, so I won’t go into lots of detail. The takeaway: If you have a claim, prosecute it.
The facts
Continue Reading Lessor Prevails in Texas Lease Termination Dispute