The Texas Supreme Court and our Courts of Appeals have now been struggling for years with the elusive distinction between “fixed” and “floating” royalties. In application, the difference between the two can have drastic and—depending on your position in a mineral title dispute—potentially catastrophic consequences.
The Neverending Story: “Fixed” vs. “Floating” Royalties in Texas
Top 10 Mistakes When Drafting Non-Competes in the Oil Patch
In the latest episode of our energy law podcast, Chip Morris will talk to us about the top ten mistakes employers can make—in the oilfield, and beyond—when drafting non-compete agreements.
SCOTX: When An “Offset Well” Is Not An Offset Well
As I wrote in a recent blog post, oil-and-gas leases will often include an offset drilling clause. Such clauses stipulate that, if a well is drilled on a neighboring tract in proximity to the leasehold, the lessee generally has three options: drill an offset well to prevent drainage; release acreage, so the lessor can independently […]
Oil and Gas Law: 2Q18 Update
The second quarter of the year has seen abundant activity at the intersection of the energy industry and the law. These are some of the highlights.
KRCL Energy Law Breakfast Seminar: Video Preview
On July 19, 2018, from 8:00–10:30 a.m. at the Hess Club in Houston, Texas, KRCL’s Energy Practice Group will be hosting a complimentary breakfast seminar, Legal Developments at the Intersection of the Oil Patch and the New Administration.
Condemnation and Eminent Domain in the Oilfield and Beyond
In the latest episode of our energy law podcast, the Managing Partner of KRCL’s Houston office, Marcy Rothman, addresses recent developments on a topic that pipelines and other energy companies confront on a regular basis: condemnation and eminent domain.
“Latent Occupational Disease” Rule Inapplicable to Frac Fluid Exposure Causing Skin Cancer
Last Friday, the Texas Supreme Court declined to extend the “latent occupational disease” discovery rule to a plaintiff whose exposure to frac fluid ultimately caused skin cancer, reversing the Thirteenth (Edinburg) Court of Appeals. “Latent Occupational Disease” Rule in Multi-Injury Cases In Schlumberger Technology Corporation v. Pasko, the plaintiff alleged he contracted skin cancer as […]
SCOTX: Term Royalty Interests Survive the Rule Against Perpetuities
It is one of those arcane principles discussed at length in textbooks that manifests itself in the real world far less frequently: the rule against perpetuities, the notion “that no interest within its scope is good unless it must vest, if at all, not later than twenty-one years after some life in being at the creation of the interest.” Hunt […]
Pennsylvania Departs from Texas on Trespass by Hydraulic Fracturing
In Texas, the long-standing “rule of capture” controls claims for subsurface trespass predicated on hydraulic fracturing activities. The rule of capture is, of course, shorthand for the theory that landowners acquire title to the minerals they produce from wells on their land, even when some of the oil or gas migrates from adjoining tracts.
“Data Dump” Trade Secrets Prosecution Tactics: Untouched by SCOTX in the Oil Patch
Ah, the “data dump”: Party A sends a request for production; Party B gives responsive documents plus an extra 50,000 pages. The tactic is used by plaintiffs’ and defense attorneys alike – and in each scenario, the receiving side feels the pain.