It was an interesting week for BLM’s hydraulic fracturing rule first finalized and then immediately challenged on March 26, 2015. On Monday (June 20, 2016), the BLM filed its final brief in the Tenth Circuit arguing that the Wyoming Federal District Court erred when it issued a nationwide injunction of the rule on September 30, […]
An old rule of thumb for title examiners was that a mineral reservation needs to be in the granting clause, not the warranty clause, of a deed to be valid. As the courts have moved to seeking to determine the parties’ intent in a deed, these old rules have been whittled away. A recent Colorado […]
A decision in late April, 2016, by the Colorado Supreme Court, allows deduction of the cost of capital for construction of gas processing and transportation facilities in calculating Colorado severance tax. In BP America Production Company v. Colorado Department of Revenue, 2016 CO 23, 2016 WL 1639829, the Colorado Supreme Court reversed the decision of […]
In companion decisions issued May 2, 2016, the Colorado Supreme Court (Gabriel, J.) affirmed district court summary judgment orders invalidating home-rule oil and gas regulations concerned with hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”). The Court relied on the intent and scope of state-wide oil and gas legislation as reflected in the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Act, §§ […]
Come November, Colorado voters may decide whether oil and gas development should be subjected to more stringent regulation. Three ballot initiatives proposed by Boulder-based Coloradans Resisting Extreme Energy Development have survived legal challenges and are now headed for signature collection. Supporters have until August 8 to collect the necessary signatures to get these measures on […]
Over the past several years there has been an ongoing debate on whether local governments have the authority to limit or even ban oil and gas operations. In 2012, residents of the City of Longmont voted to approve a ban on hydraulic fracturing within city limits. Similarly, in 2013, Fort Collins voters approved a five […]
The recent shale boom has greatly increased the amount of natural gas produced and transported across the country’s network of pipelines in recent years. Unfortunately, the increase in production has resulted in several significant environmental and safety incidents, including a widely reported 2010 gas pipeline explosion in San Bruno, California, that killed 8 people and […]
In the face of a radically altered economic and energy picture for Wyoming, Governor Matt Mead released an updated energy strategy for the State on March 14, 2016. Titled “Leading the Charge: Wyoming’s Action Plan for Energy, Environment, and Economy,” the plan is an update of a similar report issued by the State in 2013, […]
One of the more loosely used terms from Colorado’s Conservation Act and Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (“COGCC”) Rules, and one of many lawyers’ favorite words to analyze, is the term “reasonable.” When filing for an involuntary pooling application in front before the COGCC, an applicant must comply with COGCC Rule 530, which requires […]
Colorado House Bill 16-1310 was introduced on March 2, 2016, by State Senator Morgan Carroll (D) and State Representative Joseph Anthony Salazar (D). Under current Colorado law, to prevail on a claim against an oil and gas operator, the surface owner must present evidence that the operator’s use of the surface “materially interfered” with the […]