need a lawyer who deals with oil leases

Do I need a lawyer to lease oil and gas rights?

The Client Review Rating score is determined through the aggregation of validated responses. People who submit reviews are either individuals who consulted with the lawyer/law firm or who hired the lawyer/law firm and want to share their experience of that lawyer or law firm with other potential clients.

What is an oil and gas lease?

The companies need the leases also to cover the subsurface area that will be drilled and fracked. To accomplish all of this the companies combine the leased lands into a ‘pool’ or ‘unit.’ ... Signing an oil and gas lease is a business deal, but it has a personal side as well. ... The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that ...

What to do if an oil company wants to lease your land?

Should a mineral owner sign an oil and gas lease?

What are oil gas rights?

Oil and Gas Rights Mineral rights often include the rights to any oil and natural gas that exist beneath a property. The rights to these commodities can be sold or leased to others. In most cases, oil and gas rights are leased.

How do you transfer inherited mineral rights in Texas?

To transfer rights, an attorney or title insurance company must complete a title search to make sure your deceased loved one had the right to convey them. When mineral rights are separate from the real estate's surface, preparers will create a mineral deed with a legal description of all rights you are to receive.Jan 10, 2018

Do mineral rights expire in Texas?

In Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and Montana, mineral owners can own the mineral rights indefinitely and there is no way for them to passively revert to the surface owner. If a surface owner wants to own the mineral rights under their land, they must find and contact the mineral owners and offer to purchase them.Jun 1, 2020

How do I find out if I own mineral rights in Texas?

The only way to determine your rights is to conduct a search of the public land records in the county where the property is located. All the deeds conveying the property must be reviewed. This is known as reviewing the property's Chain of Title.Oct 24, 2019

Who are heirs at Texas law?

Your heirs-at-law are the persons who will receive your property under the Texas laws of descent and distribution (sometimes also called the “laws of intestacy”).

Do you have to pay property taxes on mineral rights in Texas?

In Texas, mineral rights are taxed as real property, and their taxation for property tax purposes is separated from real estate, according to the Tarrant County Appraisal District. Mineral-rights property taxes are based on open-market prices given the current condition of the market for mineral rights.

Do mineral rights transfer with property in Texas?

Mineral rights in Texas are the rights to mineral deposits that exist under the surface of a parcel of property. This right normally belongs to the owner of the surface estate; however, in Texas those rights can be transferred through sale or lease to a second party.

Do mineral rights automatically convey in Texas?

Because the minerals are considered part of the real estate in Texas, a seller under a contract that fails to mention minerals would have a contractual requirement to convey the entire real estate, including the surface and all minerals, to the buyer.Aug 5, 2014

How much are mineral rights in Texas?

As a general rule of thumb, the value for non-producing mineral rights will nearly always be less than $1,000/acre. In most cases, the mineral rights value in Texas for non-producing minerals will be $0 to $250.Oct 8, 2021

How do you find out if there are minerals on your land?

Go to the Courthouse to Search Mineral Ownership Records If you don't have the description, go to the tax office first. As a surface owner, you are paying property taxes and they can assist you with your property description. It's best if you have the deed that was signed when you or a relative purchased the property.Aug 25, 2020

How do I look up deeds in Texas?

Once a deed has been recorded by the County Clerk's Office, copies of the deed may be requested if the original deed has been misplaced. Plain copies can be found by using the Official Public Records Search and selecting "Land Records". A certified copy may be purchased through request either in person or by mail.

Do I own the minerals under my land?

It can't be assumed that you own the minerals under your land; minerals and the right to mine them can be sold in their own right, or more commonly, they can be reserved by a vendor when selling his land to a third party.Nov 9, 2017

New oil leases

In the case of new oil leases, Decker says a land man generally will contact the landowner in person, or by letter or phone, about his company’s interest in leasing land for oil production.

Potential landmines

Outside of failing to see a lawyer, what are the other common mistakes landowners might commit?

What is a lease provision?

A lease provision might state that: The Lease is granted for any or all of the following purposes: the right to stimulate all coal seams or other strata or formations using any and all methods and technology available at the time of stimulation;

What is the devil in the details?

We have all heard the old adage ‘the devil is in the details.’ This holds particularly true in oil and gas leasing. The story line has repeated itself time and time again since the Marcellus Shale land rush came to Pennsylvania. A landman contracted by the gas exploration company knocks on a landowner’s door, puts a lease in front of them, and asks them to sign on the dotted line. Stories have percolated up that some unscrupulous landmen use ‘scare tactics’ to entice landowners to sign quickly – suggesting that the company will drill under their land even if the landowner doesn’t sign a lease, or that if they don’t sign now the landman won’t be back…neither of which are true.

Is oil and gas a business?

Signing an oil and gas lease is a business deal, but it has a personal side as well. You hopefully have researched the company you intend to lease with, you have some idea how fiscally strong it is, how environmentally conscious it is, how long it has been around. To the companies, these lease holdings are commodities that are sometimes bought ...