30 million is a BIG number! That is the estimated number of employment contracts that could be impacted by the Federal Trade Commission’s new rule banning non-competes, if it goes into effect on September 4, 2024, as...more
If you dispose of produced water you are no-doubt aware of the intensive earthquakes being observed across the Midland and Delaware Basins. In West Texas Earthquake Observations, Implications for the Oil and Gas Industry,...more
The UK hydraulic fracturing industry has been in the spotlight recently as operators push for higher seismic limits in using the technique to produce shale gas....more
Sustainable Development Focus - A moonshot for solving America’s water crisis - U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT - Jan 4 The Energy Department last month declared that it is spending $100 million over the next five years to...more
The Borough of Plum, Pennsylvania (“Plum”) filed an April 2nd Petition for Review (“Petition”) before the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Appeals Board (“EAB”) of a UIC Class II-D Permit (“Permit”)...more
The seismic industry is of considerable significance to Canada's oil and gas business. In Geophysical Service Incorporated v Encana Corporation, 2016 ABQB 230 the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench had an opportunity to assess...more
In the latest chapter in the seismic-related litigation brought by Geophysical Services Incorporated (GSI), the Supreme Court of Canada has denied GSI's application for leave to appeal from a judgment of the Alberta Court of...more
Sierra Club v. Chesapeake Operating LLC et al is news more shocking than “Man Bites Dog”! A federal court has acknowledged that others are better equipped to address certain issues than the judiciary!...more
Followers of the CAT-Law Navigator know that our blog posts often address recent earthquakes around the world. As catastrophes go, a massive earthquake is about as bad as it gets so it’s a natural topic for us. And if...more
Your Texas legislators have done their work and the citizens are safe for the next two years. The other good news is that industry supporters generally believe the 2015 Legislature was their friend. House Bill 2: Set...more
Earlier this week, the Texas Railroad Commission held its first “show cause” hearing under the rule amendments adopted last October to address issues related to disposal wells located in potential high-risk seismic areas....more
On Friday, April 24, the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) ordered hearings regarding two waste injection well permits. The hearings are to address an alleged connection between the injection wells and seismic activity in...more
In Ram’s Gate Winery, LLC v. Joseph G. Roche, et al. (No. A139189 & A141090, filed 4/9/15) (Ram’s Gate), the California Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District held the doctrine of merger did not extinguish a...more
In Olympia Minerals et al v. HS Resources, et al, the Louisiana Supreme Court addressed a decision we discussed in a February entry by affirming in part, reversing in part, amending in part and remanding (because why do one...more
On Tuesday, October 28, 2014, the Texas Railroad Commission unanimously adopted amendments to rules concerning disposal wells in areas that have experienced or are likely to experience seismic activity. As covered by the...more
The Federal and Nova Scotia regulations that require oil and gas companies to submit seismic data to Nova Scotia’s offshore oil and gas board are not ultra vires, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court recently held in Geophysical...more
The Texas Railroad Commission announced that it would hire an in-house seismologist to investigate the possible link of oil and gas activity to seismic events. In a January 7, 2014 statement, the Railroad Commission said that...more
Caution should be exercised when requesting, reviewing or sharing seismic data held by a regulatory authority, as demonstrated by the latest decision in a series of lawsuits commenced by Geophysical Service Incorporated...more
The ”tradition” of stealing a prospect generator’s maps – and getting caught at it – is alive and well. Lamont et al v. Vaquillas Energy Lopeno Ltd et al is the second recent Texas case on theft of trade secrets and, like the...more
A new study assesses potential correlations between small-magnitude seismic events with fluid extraction and injection in the area of the Eagle Ford Shale of south-central Texas....more
Contracts for proprietary seismic data acquisition for oil and gas exploration frequently include a clause providing that all intellectual property developed during the seismic contractor's performance of acquisition services...more