The Texas Supreme Court recently decided an important real estate case in Town of Lakewood Village v. Bizios. Bizios was lived outside of Lakewood Village, Texas. Bizios was sued by Lakewood Village for not applying for or obtaining building permits when he began building his home. Lakewood Village, which is…
Texas oil and gas lawyers occasionally find themselves representing non-executive mineral owners. A non-executive mineral or royalty owner is someone who owns oil or gas royalty rights to a particular area of land, but who does not have the right to negotiate or sign a lease for the minerals and…
As many Texans are aware, hydraulic fracturing (“fracing”) uses a lot of water. In fact, one of the important ways in which Texas oil and gas lawyers assist their clients is to make sure that the oil and gas leases they sign contain appropriate protections for the client’s freshwater sources.…
Texas oil companies, mineral owners and oil and gas attorneys are all familiar with the Texas Railroad Commission. The Commission regulates oil and gas drilling and production and oil and gas pipelines in Texas. The Commission is pretty diligent in making sure abandoned wells are properly plugged. Unfortunately, on one…
A new statute will provide new rights to co-tenant heirs and a new option for the Texas real estate attorneys assisting them. The Texas legislature recently passed and Governor Abbott signed Section 16.0265 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code that provides assistance to heirs who have collectively inherited…
Texas landowners and oil and gas attorneys have been watching Senate Bill 740 with interest. This bill, introduced by several Texas senators, would have increased landowner protections in the event a pipeline company sought to obtain an easement on their property using eminent domain. You can read the full text…
There is a controversy between the Texas Railroad Commission and the US Army Corps of Engineers that is being followed closely by many Texas oil and gas attorneys and mineral owners. The Texas Railroad Commission is the state’s oil and gas regulator, and last year it bumped heads with the…
The Texas Supreme Court recently delivered an opinion that was not surprising to Texas oil and gas attorneys in the case of Forest Oil Corporation v. El Rucio Land and Cattle Co. The Court originally denied the review of the Corpus Christi Appeals Court decision affirming a $15 million dollar…
The U S Geological Survey (USGS) just published a revised assessment of oil and gas reserves in the Sprayberry formation in the Permian Basin in Texas. In the revision, USGS estimates the formation holds 4.2 billion barrels of recoverable oil and 3.1 trillion cubic feet of gas. This represents a…
The Texas Railroad Commission regulates oil and gas production activities in Texas. The Commission has the authority to issue and suspend permits for production companies and Texas oil and gas lawyers can file complaints with the Commission on behalf of landowners who believe they have been harmed by a well’s…