The first four months of 2017 have been chock full of major developments in the law surrounding oil and gas, and we have been reporting on them regularly in our podcast, Energy Law Round Up. Today, we bring you a convenient summary of everything that’s happened so far this year. Back in January, we addressed critical new guidance from the Texas Supreme Court about when a pipeline company can qualify as a common carrier for…
Everything You Need to Know About Oil-and-Gas Law So Far This Year
Federal Regulators Get Closer to Abandoning Stringent New Fracing Rules
KRCL oil-and-gas trial lawyer Tom Ciarlone, in the latest episode of our energy law podcast, gets you up to speed on the status of stringent new fracing rules for federal and tribal lands, and also dials you into several important developments out of the Texas Supreme Court—including a little-known pitfall that could get your well damage case dismissed with prejudice. You can subscribe to our energy law podcast on iTunes and on Google Play.
More Practical Reasons for Oilfield Service Companies to Own Their Employees’ Cell Phones
My experience in prosecuting trade secret and non-compete cases has shown me, time and time again, the advantages of company-owned cell phones for employees (especially for oilfield service companies, among which workers frequently migrate), as opposed to a “Bring-Your-Own-Device” policy. When I last blogged about this issue, I mentioned that such advantages include company costs savings and, perhaps more importantly, if a company owns the phone and the employee leaves the company, the company has…
A Shortsighted Discovery Ruling That Could Leave the Dakota Access Pipeline Vulnerable to Terror Attacks
Join oil-and-gas litigation partner Tom Ciarlone for our energy law podcast, as he discusses the intersection of the oil patch with class actions and the Fair Labor Standards Act; the federal government’s liability for the environmental cleanup of refinery waste; and a shortsighted discovery ruling that could leave the Dakota Access pipeline vulnerable to terrorist attacks.
Trump Executive Orders Target the Expansion of Drilling—Onshore and Off
Today, President Donald Trump will sign an executive order putting into motion a review by the Department of the Interior of all national monuments established since 1996—on its surface a seemingly uneventful action, but the ultimate purpose of the order is predicted to be the opening of large swaths of currently protected public lands to drilling, as well as mining and logging activities. By way of example, in its waning days, the prior administration established the so-called “Bears Ears National…
A Railroad Runs Through It: How to Evaluate Who Owns the Minerals in Your Field of Dreams
As long as the current economic conditions prevail and domestic oil production provides better opportunity for American interests, the acquisition and development of stateside mineral rights will predominate. An excellent and obvious example of this is the redoubled interest in the Permian Basin and the ramping up of activity in Midland-Odessa. As these plays continue to run, title questions will continue to emerge. Where especially arcane conveyances to railroads are memorialized in ancient documents, the…
The Nation’s First Legislative Fracking Ban Is On The Books
In the latest episode of our energy law podcast, Tom Ciarlone discusses the nation’s first legislative fracking ban and a lower bar for class certification in royalty underpayment actions, as well as multiple decisions out of the Texas Supreme Court that could spawn a wave of widespread mineral title disputes.
March News and Developments in Energy Law
In this week’s episode of our energy law podcast, KRCL trial lawyer Tom Ciarlone discusses a variety of important new decisions covering issues ranging from the intersection of fraud with disclaimers of warranties of mineral title; to proper jury charges in cessation-of-production-in-paying-quantities cases; to key developments in federal fracking regulations and emerging bankruptcy law principles affecting the midstream sector.
Defamation Claims in the Oil Patch: A Victory for the Industry
Join oil-and-gas trial lawyer Tom Ciarlone as he gets you up to speed on critical new case law in the energy industry—listen to the latest episode of his podcast, Energy Law Round Up.
February News and Developments in Energy Law
KRCL trial lawyer Tom Ciarlone discusses recent oil-and-gas news and developments in the latest episode of his podcast, www.energylawroundup.com.