RANCHING Business
Organize Those Oil and Gas Documents By Gilda V. Bryant
Members of the December class hosted by TCU Energy Institute hold their 6-part fi le folders, prepared to set up organized fi les to keep up with their oil and gas royalty interests. These classes are offered on a regular basis around Texas by TCU Energy Institute. Visit
www.energyinstitute.tcu.edu for class schedules and locations.
A
LTHOUGH EXPERTS PREDICTED WE WOULD HAVE A PAPER- free society by the 21st century, it hasn’t quite worked out that way.
For instance, oil and gas royalty owners tend to
have mounds of paper to handle, read and maintain. A common response is simply to toss documents in a box, folder or other “catch-all” solution. Later, the frustrated owner often spends precious time mining for just the right item. For novice royalty owners, any record-keeping
process may be overwhelming. An organization sys- tem that allows papers to be easily added, located and stored is a vital tool that enables producers to work more effi ciently. David Wallace, rancher, mineral owner and oil/
gas attorney, is also an instructor at Texas Christian University (TCU) and the TCU Energy Institute. He says organization is always a key to being able to dis- cuss matters. Being organized is the best way to know which minerals are leased, and which terms an owner received in the past.
Keep everything Wallace advises royalty owners to keep all papers
related to oil and gas minerals because they may be helpful in the future. One innocuous document may be critical during a dispute over money.
58 The Cattleman January 2016 For example, documents that give the royalty owner
legal ownership of minerals include a will, trust, ab- stract of title, decree of distribution or purchase of mineral rights. Other important items include current and expired
oil and gas leases, along with surface protection at- tachments. Pooling agreements and division orders should be
fi led. Retain any correspondence or notes jotted down
during phone conversations with the oil producer’s representative, along with his contact information. Re- cording remarks taken during visits with people who may also own a mineral interest are crucial. Save all check stubs, maps and shut-in payments.
Original and certifi ed copies are good candidates for storing in a safety deposit box because they are useful during litigation. The county where the minerals are located has oil
and gas-related documents fi led in the county court- house. Armed with the correct legal description, min- eral owners can locate previous oil activity that has occurred on the property. The Texas Railroad Commis- sion (TRC) may have some records and occasionally the oil and gas operator provides copies of documents upon request after performing a customary title search. One company that has an enormous oil and gas data-
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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