If you were wondering whether the debate over the safety and effectiveness of hydraulic fracturing has entered our national conciousness, check this out:
In a serious approach to the issue, the opinion magazine National Review recently joined in the conversation in a piece by Kevin Williamson, The Truth About Fracking – What the Protestors Don’t
In a vindication of landowners’ rights, the Texas Supreme Court prohibited a pipeline owner from using eminent domain to take private property. In Texas Rice Land Partners, Ltd. v. Denbury Green Pipeline-Texas, LLC, the court said that a pipeline must show that it satisfies the requirements for common-carrier status before it will be allowed
Maybe you’ve been there. All signals are “go” for closing on your PSA. Then the buyer chooses not to complete the transaction. What to do? A question your lawyer will think about when asked to enforce a purchase and sale agreement: Does it describe the property well enough to comply with the statute of frauds?
The Dallas Gas Drilling Task Force has issued recommendations for regulation of hydraulic fracturing. The task force focused on zoning requirements, permitting requirements, air quality issues, and water-related issues. A few highlights:
A “strip” is just what it sounds like: A narrow parcel of land. A”gore” is a strip in another form, such as a triangle or other odd-shaped parcel. When a grantor conveys land he owns adjacent to a narrow strip that thereby ceases to be of benefit or importance to him, he also conveys the narrow strip unless he reserves the strip for himself by plain and specific language. These random tracts can be valuable when there is oil and gas production and can be lost without careful contract drafting.
Escondido Services, LLC v. VKM Holdings, LP, Escondido Services, 321 S.W.3d 102 (Tex. App—Eastland)
Effective February 1, 2012, the Texas Railroad Commission implemented a new rule that will require operators and service and supply companies who disclose the chemical contents of fracking fluids. This rule implements a statute passed in the 2011 legislative session. The rule requires disclosure of the nature and content of additives and chemical ingredients used
Beware of the law – and the location – you choose to resolve your contractual disputes. Choice of law and forum selection provisions are commonly used, often misunderstood, and frequently overlooked contract clauses that can significantly alter a litigant’s legal rights and remedies.
Stokes Interest, G.P. v. Santo-Pietro, 2010 WL 2929534 (Tex. App.—El Paso)
The partnership agreement said the law of California would govern disputes and a court in Beverly Hills would be the exclusive venue. The underlying asset, an oil and gas lease, was located in Reeves County, Texas. The dissatisfied partner, a Texan, understandably sought to litigate his breach of warranty, fraud and fraudulent misrepresentation claim in a Texas court. The district court and the appellate court took a look at the forum selection provision and dismissed the lawsuit, requiring the partner to pursue his claims in Bevely Hills.Continue Reading Jed Clampett Redux: The Dispute Began in Reeves County and Ended in Beverly Hills
If you operate wells, gas plants and similar facilities in populated areas, address your neighbors’ concerns. This could lead to increased costs and inconvenience in operations, but it might be cheaper in the long run.
Continue Reading Is Your Compressor Station a Nuisance?
What happens when the owner’s promise that it has conducted due diligence collides with the contractor’s fixed price obligation?
Continue Reading The Burden of Due Diligence
The contract of sale for the property mentions that you, the seller, intend to reserve the hard minerals, but not the oil and gas beneath the property. The deed to close the transaction contains no reservation of anything.
Continue Reading The Reservation Was Not in the Deed