Are you Familiar With “Making the Lease fit the Prospect – The Big Picture? A well-rounded petroleum landman should, as much as possible, be very familiar with the “Big Picture” as to the oil and gas project he is trying to lease. Sometimes that is impossible to do due to confidential information associated with the project.
Do you Know Where the Mineral Owner Interest Stops? A well-rounded petroleum landman should be very familiar with understanding where the mineral owner interest stops underneath streams and rivers compared to navigable waterways. For example, consider this example: There is a river in Oklahoma that separates two properties. Where does the mineral owner interest lie around
Is the Best Time When Oil and Gas Prices are Up or Down? A well-rounded petroleum landman should be very familiar with the associated potential pit falls when trying to answer this question, “When is the best time to drill a well.?” One day, most petroleum landmen will find themselves in this situation which can affect
Does the state you are working in recognize tenancy by the Entireities? A well-rounded petroleum landman should be very familiar with Tenancy by the Entireties vs Joint Tenancy. In addition, does the state you are working in still recognize Tenancy by the Entireties? The petroleum landman should know how the Tenancy by the Entireties effects
Which Title Curative Issues Can Affect Drilling and Completion? A well-rounded petroleum landman should be very familiar with the different categories of curing title issues and the different types of title defects (mineral and/or surface title, working interest title, royalty interests, joint operating agreement issues, oil and gas lease status and issues, recording and notices issues,
Horizontal Severance Clause. A landman working in the wind energy sector should be aware of a wind energy lease which contains a Horizontal Severance Clause that limits the wind energy lease to a specified height above the surface. This is a crucial element in a wind energy lease. If wind energy technology is state of
What’s the difference, and how do they apply to the Pugh clause? Every petroleum landman should be very familiar with the Rubberband Clause and the Freestone Rider Clause and how they can affect the future development of the oil and gas lease for both vertical and horizontal well development. These two clauses are also referred to
Rock beats Scissors – Mineral beats Surface. Every petroleum landman should be very familiar with the minerals being the dominate estate in the United States over the surface. Since mineral rights are considered real property, mineral owners have the full right of enjoyment of them. Without access to capture them they would be “landlocked” so to
Problem Questions, Answers, Discussions about Life Estate Issues. Every petroleum landman should be very familiar with a Life Estate and the issues surrounding it? Simply put, a Life Estate is a Future Interest held by one person in the real property of another that will take effect upon the expiration of the other property’s interest created
Differences Between Life Estates and TODDs. On November 1, 2008, a new statute became effective in Oklahoma. (Later amended in 2010 and 2011). Although Transfer-On-Death Deeds (“TODDs”) were used in other states to transfer real property prior to usage in Oklahoma, the Non-Testamentary Transfer of Property Act (Title 58, Okla. Stat. §1251, et. seq.) became effective
Can you Automatically Lose an Oil and Gas Lease? Most petroleum landmen are not that familiar with this situation. The simple answer to the question above is yes, but the process can be anything but simple. It all depends upon 1) how the oil and gas lease is written, 2) what caused the breach, 3) were
What Issue with the Dunham Rule Effects the Landman and Title Curative? Every petroleum landman should be familiar with the Dunham Rule. In not-so-distant past, petroleum landmen from Oklahoma and Texas found themselves working in the state of Pennsylvania in the Marcellus Shale (natural gas). The situation arose in reading a conveyance of land deed where
Petroleum Landmen Making the Transition. To become more diversified and marketable, today’s petroleum landman should be familiar with its role in Alternative Energy land practices and the associated contracts. The old saying, “there’s nothing new under the sun” is being proved wrong. Another song said, “the answer my friend is blowing in the wind.” This creates
Should they ratify an oil and gas lease? Every petroleum landman should be familiar with a ‘Non-participating Royalty Interest.’ A simple explanation for a non-participating royalty interest owner is that they are along for the ride.Non-participating royalty interestIn other words, a non-participating royalty interest usually means, “a percentage of production/revenue carved out of the mineral estate.
An Overview of Participation Agreements, Exploration Agreements, and Development Agreements. Every petroleum landman should be familiar with the different types of Participation Agreements. Frequently companies desiring to pursue an opportunity with other companies do not want to incur liability for the others’ obligations. Rather than forming a Joint Venture, industry participants enter contracts to govern the
What is the Petroleum Landman’s role? Every petroleum landman should be familiar with the term ‘Due Diligence’ as it refers to the oil and gas industry and its role in performing it. Due Diligence covers a very broad set of research skills, some of which require specialized degreed training in that aspect of the research. Others
Are you sure about that? When the petroleum landman in the field either runs title or is given a mineral ownership report from which he or she is to lease the mineral owners, he or she can sometimes encounter situations he wasn’t counting on. These same issues are associated with surface title, too. Title
The Hurdles in Oklahoma Oil and Gas Leases and HBP Properties. The following is an exercise that every petroleum landman should be able to answer as regards to oil and gas wells holding oil and gas leases (HBP) in properties located in Oklahoma. The following parameters covered 640 acres of leases located in Section 28-T12N-R10W –
Top Leases, Assignments, Farmout Agreements, and Joint Operating Agreements. Something that every petroleum landman and/or oil and gas lease agent should know is what the difference is between an Exculpatory Clause and a Novation Clause and how they can affect the most common agreements used in the oil and gas industry. If these clauses are not
The Doctrine of Indivisibility. Every petroleum landman and/or oil and gas lease agent should understand whether or not the Oil and Gas Lease is subject to what is known as the “The Doctrine of Indivisibility.” This means that the Lease is not divisible or not divided, and states that a single well, which is capable of producing
Lessee beware! Every petroleum landman should know that in order to avoid negative impacts on the Lessee’s operations, the ‘compensatory royalty/offset drilling clause’ in an oil and gas lease must be carefully drafted. Negotiating and articulating all aspects of the clause is crucial to meet the Lessee’s current and future operational needs while protecting the leasehold
Offset Drilling Clause. As a Petroleum Landman, have you ever run into a situation in a lease regarding an ‘Offset Drilling Clause’ where, either your potential Lessor is demanding such a clause in his new lease or in your chain of title where you’ve found a lawsuit regarding a Lessee’s failure to drill an Offset Well
After Acquired Title Doctrine. As a Petroleum Landman, have you ever run into a situation where an After Acquired Title problem existed? Do you know how to recognize it when it occurs? How does it affect you as a Petroleum Landman chaining title or reviewing someone else’s title report? The legal definition for the After Acquired Title
As a Petroleum Landman, have you ever run into a situation where family members had a dispute over their mineral interest they obtained via Intestate Succession? For example, interest that was conveyed prior to July 1, 1985, and after July 1, 1985, in Oklahoma. What’s the Difference? Intestate SuccessionThe following examples show the different before and after
As a Petroleum Landman, have you ever run across an issue regarding a Will drafted as a ‘Strict Will Per Stirpes’, ‘Will Per Stirpes’, Will Per Modern Stirpes’, or a Will that was drafted as a ‘Will Per Capita’? Do you know the difference and which states recognize them? Will DefinitionsStrict Will Per StirpesWhen a decedent’s
As a Petroleum Landman, have you ever run across an issue regarding mineral conveyances where it appears that two parties are claiming the same interest in the minerals? Do you know how to retrace the conveyances and spot the problem and then be able to determine who owns the minerals? Many new Petroleum Landmen have not
An advantage of thorough and applicable Petroleum Landman Training comes from highly experienced oil and gas attorneys, senior right-of-way personnel, and senior landmen (See: The Advisory Board of the Institute of Energy Management) who, in their career, have dealt with certain “landmines” (like this subject) and how they resolved them. Open Mines DoctrineFor example, have you
Most Petroleum Landman training courses do not address this situation. The simple answer is yes, but the process can be anything but simple. It all depends upon 1) how the oil and gas lease is written, 2) what caused the breach, 3) were there any proper notices provided, 4) are the party’s willing to work
Petroleum Landman Complexities. An advantage of thorough and applicable Petroleum Landman Training comes from highly experienced oil and gas attorneys, senior right-of-way personnel, and senior landmen (See: The Advisory Board of the Institute of Energy Management) who, in their career, have dealt with certain “landmines” (like this subject) and how they resolved them. Most Petroleum Landman
What’s the difference and how are they used? Insert Image Every petroleum landman should know what’s the difference is between the two terms and how are they used? Why so? In some part of the country the Net Royalty Acre calculations are used rather than the Net Mineral Acre method. One of the main differences between