A company in New York is attempting to secure leases to allow it to produce oil and gas and to use the leased land for a carbon dioxide injection program for long-term storage. Does this herald a new type of development that...more
Let’s assume you own 95 acres in Greene County, Pennsylvania. In 2019, you signed an oil and gas lease with ABC Exploration. During the negotiations, you agreed that only those post-production costs which actually...more
This is a familiar yet troubling question. Imagine you own 135 acres in Washington County. You have received offers from several oil and gas drillers but have not yet signed a lease. Your neighbor, however, did sign a lease...more
An oil and gas lease with a “free gas” clause may be a valuable tool for landowners to push back against drillers’ inaccurate attempts to value gas at the “wellhead”. Prior to the advent of Marcellus Shale drilling, "free...more
Judge Delivers Major Setback to Trump Policy to Increase Coal Mining on Federal Land - "But the court ruling does say that the 2017 Trump administration policy, enacted by former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, to overturn...more
An opinion that observes “Obviously the jury was not overly enamored with Appellants.” is worth discussing. The decision is Stephens et al v. Three Finger Black Shale Partnership et al....more
Gas Drilling Not Damaging Forests' Waterways, State Finds - "Pennsylvania's state forests agency says it isn't finding damage to waterways amid the expansion of natural gas drilling in recent years, although it is reporting...more
Coke or Pepsi? Elvis or the Beatles? Left Twix or Right Twix? Fixed or floating royalty? Among the great debates of recent decades, few have proven quite as frustrating as the great “Fixed v. Floating” royalty debate in Texas...more
In Cities v. Fossil Fuels, Exxon's Allies Want the Accusers Investigated - "Now two industry-friendly groups are turning the tables and asking the SEC to investigate the cities and counties for possible fraud." Why this...more
Last month, the Texas Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision to toss a lawsuit by Orca Assets GP LLP against JP Morgan Chase over property in the Eagle Ford Shale. ...more
Oil World Turns Upside Down as U.S. Sells Oil in Middle East - "Yet, in a trade that illustrates how the rise of the American shale industry is upending energy markets across the globe, the U.A.E. bought oil directly from...more
The Supreme Court of Ohio issued an opinion on January 3, 2018 in Alford v. Collins-McGregor Operating Co., Slip Opinion No. 2018–Ohio–8, affirming the dismissal of the landowners’ complaint for failure to state a claim upon...more
On November 30, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit issued an opinion in Eclipse Resources - Ohio, LLC v. Madzia, affirming the lower court’s grant of summary judgment to Eclipse Resources in all respects. ...more
An Obscure Statute Is Helping Trump Save U.S. Coal, Nuclear - "Rick Perry is using an authority granted to him as U.S. energy secretary to call on the independent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to change its rules...more
So your oil and gas lease has now converted from the primary term to the secondary term – now what? There are several issues that a landowner or mineral interest owner should be aware of at this stage of the lease. ...more
Vestiges of the early Haynesville Shale land rush remain. Imagine: The lease is about to expire. Lessee (Mecom) offers lessor (Henderson) $90 per acre for an extension, telling him, “I could extend for two more years...more