COVID-19 raises a number of serious issues for operators and other industry participants in the oil patch, including compliance with continuous drilling obligations, shut-in royalty clauses, cessation of production, and production in paying quantities. Please watch this short video segment to learn more.
VIDEO: COVID-19 and the Oil Patch — Lease Litigation Pitfalls
LOCKDOWN UPDATE: Energy Industry Exempted from Harris and Galveston County Stay-at-Home Orders
On Monday night and Tuesday morning, respectively, Galveston County and Harris County issued stay-at-home orders. As we discussed in our prior blog covering Louisiana’s statewide order, Galveston County has expressly incorporated the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency’s (CISA) guidelines for essential workers, which generally exempts the energy industry from its order. So energy work will […]
LOCKDOWN: “Essential” Oil & Gas Work During Coronavirus Stay-At-Home Orders
As of press time, 11 statewide stay-at-home orders are in effect, with Louisiana being the first state with significant upstream, midstream, and downstream capabilities to be locked down. Louisiana’s order is effective now through April 12. Oil and gas work is generally exempted as “essential” work through the order’s incorporation by reference of the Cybersecurity […]
ARTICLE EXCERPT: The Unsettled Definition of Waters of the United States
Since the Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act or “CWA”) inception in 1972, a key issue has been: Which waters of the United States (“WOTUS”) are regulated under the CWA and which are left to the states to regulate. The answer to this question definition of WOTUS touches everything from farming to homebuilding, mining, […]
PODCAST: Interpreting Oil-and-Gas Contracts, The Rule of Capture and Mineral Trespass, and Class Action Developments for Operators
In the latest episode of our energy law podcast, we discuss recent guidance from the Texas Supreme Court on interpreting oil-and-gas contracts; cross-jurisdictional differences surrounding the rule of capture and subsurface mineral trespass; and troubling class action developments for operators and other industry participants.
Sixth Circuit Fans the Flames of Class Certification Against Operators
I have written previously about class certification in the oil patch. Frequently the emphasis is around whether the putative class can satisfy Rule 23’s commonality and predominance requirements. The recent trend has been toward troubling developments for operators, including courts that focus on ostensibly “common” facts that are irrelevant to the claims asserted or, worse […]
Rule-of-Capture Showdown: Pennsylvania v. Texas
Last year, I wrote about Pennsylvania’s departure from Texas on the law surrounding trespass by hydraulic fracturing. As first stated in Coastal Oil & Gas Corp. v. Garza Energy Trust, 268 S.W.3d 1 (Tex. 2008), trespass claims for drainage by hydraulic fracturing are barred in Texas by the venerable “rule of capture”—shorthand for the theory […]
SCOTX Issues Another Key Decision for Interpreting Oil-and-Gas Contracts
The Texas Supreme Court, beginning in 2017, began issuing a number of decisions altering the analysis for the interpretation of oil-and-gas agreements, principally mineral leases and conveyances. I wrote about many of these opinions as they were released: “Texas High Court Ruling Sows Confusion On Mineral Deeds” (Wenske v. Ealy) (Law360, subscription required)—chipping away at […]
Podcast: Royalty Underpayment Class Actions; Duties of the Mineral Executive; and Anti-Pooling Clauses
In the latest episode of our energy law podcast, we discuss troubling developments at the intersection of class actions and consumer protection laws in royalty underpayment cases; the Texas Supreme Court’s latest pronouncements on the duties of executive mineral rights owners to non-executives; and a new appellate court decision that addresses when the acceptance of […]
Failure to Launch: Eminent Domain Breaks Down in the Texas Legislature
Eminent domain proceedings in Texas are a complex process governed by multiple constitutions, laws, and regulations.[1] Through this process the Texas government, its agencies, and authorized private entities acquire land to advance initiatives relating to economic development, energy, transportation, public works, and utilities. However, eminent domain proceedings can leave private landowners feeling harassed or ripped […]