Insights

On December 2, 2020, the Supreme Court of Ohio held that the Ohio Marketable Title Act (OMTA) applies to severed mineral interests despite the enactment of the Ohio Dormant Mineral Act (ODMA).

In Briggs v. Southwestern Energy Production Co. (Apr. 2, 2018), the Superior Court of Pennsylvania held that trespass and conversion claims concerning hydraulic fracturing were not precluded by the rule of capture.

In a January 3, 2018 decision, the Supreme Court of Ohio held that Ohio does not recognize an implied covenant to explore further as a distinct implied covenant in oil and gas leases. 

Joseph Mann, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and a member of the tax group, authored an article for the OOGA Bulletin (the monthly publication of the Ohio Oil and Gas Association) titled “IRS Announces that Marginal Well Production Credits are Available for 2016 Natural Gas Production.”

Greg Russell, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and the chair of the firm's energy subgroup, authored an article for the OOGA Bulletin titled "Legal Issues Facing Ohio Producers."

Joseph Mann, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and a member of the tax group, authored an article for the OOGA Bulletin titled "Enhanced Oil Recovery Credits and Marginal Well Production Credits: Potential Availability for 2016."

Greg Russell, a partner in the Vorys Columbus office and the leader of the firm’s energy group, authored an article for the Energy Mineral Law Foundation titled “Statutory Unitization in Ohio: A Brief Primer.”

Michael Vennum and Keith Zabela, of counsel in the Vorys Pittsburgh office, co-authored the "Title and Conveyancing of Oil and Gas Rights in Pennsylvania” chapter for the second edition of The Law of Oil and Gas in Pennsylvania.

Vorys Partners Pete Lusenhop and John Keller authored an article titled “Deduction of Post-Production Costs – An Analysis of Royalty Calculation Issues Across the Appalachian Basin” for the for the 36th Annual Energy & Mineral Law Institute Publication.

Lisa Babish Forbes and Aaron Williams, attorneys in the Vorys Cleveland office, co-authored “Can Localities Use Ballot Power To Ban Oil And Gas Drilling?” for Appellate Law360.

The Ohio Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) recently decided what we believe is its first case concerning the allocation of property taxes from horizontal drilling. In the case, the BTA affirmed the Harrison County Board of Revision’s decision dismissing a complaint filed by a local taxing authority challenging the allocation of the tax revenue.

On June 18, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio issued its first decision analyzing one aspect of the much contested Ohio Dormant Mineral Act.

Kevin Gormly, a partner in the Pittsburgh office, and Andrew Guran, an associate in the Akron office, provided the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Update in the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Mineral Law Newsletter, No. 2.

Greg Russell, Pete Lusenhop and Steven Chang, attorneys in the Vorys Columbus office, co-authored an article for the June 2015 edition of the Oil and Gas Journal titled “Ohio Weighs Post-Production Costs, Royalty Calculations.”

On April 7, 2015, USEPA proposed a zero discharge Clean Water Act pretreatment standard for wastewater from existing or new Unconventional Oil and Gas Extraction facilities discharged to a Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW).

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced the results of a 2014 enforcement initiative that focused on the oil and gas industry in New Mexico and west Texas. According to the DOL, it recovered more than $1.3 million owed to some 1,300 employees as a result of this investigation. This is not the first DOL foray into wage-and-hour practices within the oil and gas industry. In December 2014, the DOL announced that employers engaged in natural gas extraction in the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania and West Virginia agreed to pay $4,498,547 in back wages to 5,310 employees.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio recently certified an important question of law concerning the deduction of post-production costs to the Supreme Court of Ohio: Does Ohio follow the “at the well” rule (which permits the deduction of post-production costs) or does it follow some version of the “marketable product” rule (which limits the deduction of post-production costs under certain circumstances)?

Over the past year, Pennsylvania has continued to lead the northeastern United States in natural gas production. According to a report published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration on November 25, 2014, Pennsylvania became the second-largest shale gas producing state in the nation in 2013, and production continued to increase throughout 2014.

2014 was a year of continued growth and expansion for Ohio’s oil and gas industry. Drilling and production increased dramatically, with more than 50 Utica rigs operating in Ohio at year end and over 550 new drilling permits having been issued as of October 2014, which is more than all of 2013.

On December 15, 2014, the United States Supreme Court decided that a party seeking to remove a class action to federal court need not include evidence of the amount in controversy as part of its petition for removal. Instead, the party seeking removal need only plausibly state that the amount at stake exceeds $5 million. The case is Dart Cherokee Basin Operating Co. LLC v. Owens, 574 U.S. ---, 2014 U.S. LEXIS 8435 (2014).