Tag: Oil Gas and Mineral Law
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Arkansas Supreme Court Rules that Mineral Integration Process is Constitutional
Oil and gas operators attempt to secure the right to drill for minerals by obtaining leases from mineral owners. Not all owners affirmatively agree to lease, either because they disagree with drilling near their property, or because they want better terms. If lease negotiations are frustrated, an oil and gas operator in Arkansas can seek…
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Ohio Court Rules that Local Ordinance Cannot Prevent Hydraulic Fracturing
An Ohio state law was passed in 2004 that gave the State of Ohio sole and exclusive authority to regulate the location of oil and gas wells in the state. Competing with this state law was a municipal ordinance that attempted to block drilling activities within Akron Ohio. All this came to a head when…
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United States Only One of Four Countries that Produces Shale Gas and Tight Oil
With our firm centrally located in Western Arkansas, it’s been enjoyable being able to represent producers in Arkansas and Oklahoma as they have produced natural resources from the Fayetteville Shale and the Woodford Shale. Shale gas and tight oil production has assisted the United States in becoming energy independent over the past few years and…
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Friday Mail Bag: "Hey Daily, What is an Ancillary Probate?"
I am frequently asked to assist families with ancillary probates in oil and gas producing states such as Arkansas, Oklahoma, Wyoming and North Dakota. Wills, trusts and probate law can be complex enough when an executor only has to manage assets in one state. Managing assets in multiple states can be a very onerous task.…
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Integration (Force Pooling) in Arkansas: What Happens to Unleased Mineral Interests?
If you’ve ever received notice from the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission that your mineral interest was subject to an integration application, you may have wondered what “integration” actually is. Most states refer to it integration as “force pooling” or “compulsory pooling” of non-consenting mineral interests. In essence, after notice and a hearing, the Arkansas…
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FAQ: What Are The “Title Standards” And Why Are They Important?
The Standards for Examination of Real Estate Titles in Arkansas, or “title standards” for short, have been published since 1995, with the most recent and fourth edition being published just this past week. Attorneys frequently rely on title standards when conducting title examination for their clients. Each state where I practice oil and gas law, including Arkansas,…
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Thomas Daily rated as one of the Mid-South’s Super Lawyers
Congratulations to Thomas A. Daily, member of Daily & Woods, P.L.L.C., for being named as one of the Mid-South’s best lawyers again by the Super Lawyers Publication, in the area of Energy & Natural Resource law. Mr. Daily has practiced with Daily & Woods, P.L.L.C. since 1970, practicing primarily in the field of oil, gas…
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The Duhig Rule Explained (Mineral Reservations are Tricky)
Because natural gas exploration has increased in Arkansas in recent years, my clients are often negotiating land transactions where they convey the surface, but retain all or a portion of their mineral interests. One would think that it would be simple to reserve a fractional interest in minerals from the grant, but in truth, it…
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What is a Mineral Title Opinion?
For the last ten years I have been a mineral title lawyer and have enjoyed rendering mineral title opinions for production companies who are exploring and producing in various areas of the country, including the Fayetteville Shale in Arkansas and Arkoma Basin in Western Arkansas and Eastern Oklahoma. This blog post contains portions of a paper…
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After the Natural Gas Boom…
One of thedailylawblog‘s readers forwarded this New York Times Article, which contains a great discussion of the state of domestic natural gas shale development during record low gas prices. The article tells the story about how the gas market affects natural gas producers. For the visual learners, these charts depict the story perfectly. Essentially, gas prices…