The Energy Law

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

Oil and gas operator, Delaware Basin Resources LLC (DBR), entered into 13 leases with 13 mineral owners in February 2014, all of which were essentially the same. The meaning of the word is hotly contested, the death of a lease potentially worth millions of dollars largely depending on the interpretation of a single conjunction.

Oil 52

Oil Gas Basin E&A 52

The Energy Law

JUNE 7, 2018

On Thursday, a divided panel of the Texas Court of Appeals in Houston held that the 2014-2015 drop in oil prices is not a force majeure for purposes of general force majeure contractual protection. In TEC Olmos, LLC v. 01-16-00579, 2018 WL 2437449 (Tex. Houston May 31, 2018).

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Oil Finance E&A IT 40

The Energy Law

JANUARY 27, 2020

Can targeted advertising establish general jurisdiction over a foreign corporation? The Fifth Circuit had not addressed this issue until Frank v. P N K (Lake Charles) L.L.C., 18-31060, 2020 WL 288213 (5th Cir. But in so doing, the court may have announced a new jurisdictional test with significant ramifications for future cases.

E&P 40

E&P E&A Casing IT 40

The Energy Law

JUNE 24, 2019

2014) held that punitive damages were not available under the rationale of an earlier Supreme Court case, Miles v. The six justices in the majority opinion reversed the Ninth Circuit and resolved a circuit split on this issue. Justice Ginsburg dissented, joined by Justices Breyer and Sotomayor. A hatch blew open and crushed his hand.

Maintenance 40

Maintenance Casing E&A Education 40

The Energy Law

MARCH 26, 2019

District Court for the Western District of Louisiana held that a unit operator may not recover post-production costs from an unleased mineral owner’s share of production proceeds in Allen Johnson, et al. Chesapeake Louisiana, LP. [1] 2] The UMOs argued that La. Chesapeake Louisiana, LP. [1] 2] The UMOs argued that La. The UMOs argued that La.

Operator 52

Operator Exploration and Production E&A Casing 52

The Energy Law

FEBRUARY 4, 2021

2014), another case involving an arbitration clause which incorporated the AAA rules and explicitly exempted certain claims from arbitration. Therefore, litigants and practitioners in the Fifth Circuit should continue to look to the Fifth Circuit’s decision for guidance in determining “who” decides whether a claim is arbitrable.

Casing 52

Casing E&A Manufacturing IT 52

The Energy Law

MAY 26, 2016

District Court Judge Dee Drell (Western District, LA) recently denied a motion to alter or amend the Court’s judgment against CITGO Petroleum Corp.– allowing an $81 million judgment against the oil company to stand. The judgment is the latest in a suit the EPA filed against CITGO under the Clean Water Act for a 2006 spill at the oil company’s St.

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Petroleum Casing Barrel Refinery 40

The Energy Law

FEBRUARY 9, 2021

2014); Barker v. In In re Deepwater Horizon , No. 20-30300, 2021 WL 96168, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal held that fishermen who intentionally came upon the scene of the wreckage of the Deepwater Horizon failed to state a claim of negligent infliction of emotional distress under general maritime law.

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Offshore Casing E&A Oil 40

The Energy Law

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

Oil and gas operator, Delaware Basin Resources LLC (DBR), entered into 13 leases with 13 mineral owners in February 2014, all of which were essentially the same. The meaning of the word is hotly contested, the death of a lease potentially worth millions of dollars largely depending on the interpretation of a single conjunction.

Oil 40

Oil Gas Basin Exploration and Production 40

The Energy Law

MARCH 17, 2020

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of denials of applications to decommission offshore pipelines in place in a departure from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement’s (“BSEE”) longstanding practices. And rarely, if ever, will the order identify a specific project involving the use of the SSRA at issue.

Pipeline 40

Pipeline Offshore E&A Management 40

The Energy Law

JUNE 8, 2020

BlueStone primes the Court to resolve a Texas appellate court split regarding whether a lease provision requiring royalties to be paid based on “gross” profits or value received from the sale of oil and gas production nullifies an “at the well” valuation point elsewhere in a lease. NationsBank , 939 S.W.2d 2d 118, 120-21 (Tex. Chesapeake Expl.,

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Royalty Exploration and Production Oil IT 52

The Energy Law

AUGUST 19, 2020

On September 14, 2014, James Mays, a valve technician and an employee of Furmanite American (“Furmanite”) died while servicing valves on a platform that was part of Chevron’s gas gathering system and located in Louisiana’s territorial waters. Chevron Pipe Line Co. Chevron Pipe Line Co. In Pacific Operators Offshore, LLP v. 207, 222 (2012).

Operator 40

Operator Offshore Casing Pipeline 40

The Energy Law

APRIL 30, 2020

On November 5, 2014, the landowner provided notice to the mineral servitude owner that the mineral servitude expired and requested a recordable act evidencing its expiration effective June 28, 2006. A well was spud on March 28, 2006. The well was a dry hole, however, and was therefore plugged and abandoned on April 21, 2006.

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Operator Spud-in Dry Hole Oil 40

The Energy Law

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Smart Fabricators of Texas, LLC , 970 F.3d 3d 550, a three-judge panel of the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal held on August 14, 2020, that seaman status under the Jones Act may apply to an injured welder on a jack-up oil rig adjacent to an inland pier. Gilbert Sanchez, a welder-fitter employed by SmartFab, never went to sea on vessels.

Casing 40

Casing Drilling rig Offshore E&A 40

The Energy Law

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Smart Fabricators of Texas, LLC , 970 F.3d 3d 550, a three-judge panel of the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal held on August 14, 2020, that seaman status under the Jones Act may apply to an injured welder on a jack-up oil rig adjacent to an inland pier. Gilbert Sanchez, a welder-fitter employed by SmartFab, never went to sea on vessels.

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Casing Drilling rig Offshore E&A 40

The Energy Law

AUGUST 7, 2018

Mr. Lennie had worked for the pipe yard for a number of years, and 16 years after his retirement, in 2010, Mr. Lennie was diagnosed with lung cancer and died that same year. However, his surviving wife and children did not file suit against various pipe yard and oil company defendants until almost four years later – in January 2014.

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Casing E&A Sustainable Sustainability 40

The Energy Law

OCTOBER 15, 2020

The path to this Proposed Rule has been long and winding, beginning in 2014 with BOEM resisting making changes through formal notice and comment rulemaking pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, and instead continuing to regulate this issue through Notice to Lessee (“NTL”) guidance documents.

Pipeline 52

Pipeline Operator E&A Abandonment 52

The Energy Law

OCTOBER 15, 2020

The path to this Proposed Rule has been long and winding, beginning in 2014 with BOEM resisting making changes through formal notice and comment rulemaking pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, and instead continuing to regulate this issue through Notice to Lessee (“NTL”) guidance documents.

Pipeline 40

Pipeline Exploration and Production Operator E&A 40

The Energy Law

OCTOBER 14, 2021

On September 30, 2021, the EPA once again signaled a policy change on what provisions a state can include in its Clean Air Act State Implementation Plan (“SIP”) for exemptions and affirmative defenses during periods of startup, shutdown, and malfunction (“SSM”). 2015 SSM SIP Policy. 33840 (June 12, 2015). LAC 33:III.507.J.1.

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Shutdown IT Maintenance E&A 59