The Federal Signature Ransom: When a Communitization Agreement Freezes Your Royalties
Your well is producing, but your checks are stalled. Here is why federal bureaucracy might be holding your money hostage, and what you can do about it.
Legal
Owner research · title · valuation
The Mineral Rights Journal
Plain-language research for mineral and royalty owners making consequential decisions.
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“The Surface Hostage Note” — How Montana’s Damage Act Lets the Dirt Freeze Your Mineral Deal
In Montana, a mineral owner can be right on paper but stuck in real life. How surface owner rights can stall development and freeze your mineral assets.
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11 on this pageYour Minerals Aren’t the Target — Your Pore Space Is
Received a carbon storage letter in Louisiana? Learn how new pore space unitization laws and H.B. 966 can force you into a storage project.
Legal
The Severance Tax Shell Game: When Your Operator Tries to Tax Your Royalty
Kentucky operators have a history of deducting severance taxes from royalty checks. The state's highest court finally called their bluff.
Legal
Oklahoma Pooling Elections: Understanding the 20-Day Deadline
Ignore an Oklahoma pooling order and the state makes a default election for you. Here is how the 20-day clock works and why silence costs you money.
Legal
Pennsylvania Minimum Royalty: How Deductions Affect the 12.5% Rate
Pennsylvania law guarantees a 12.5% minimum royalty. So why does your check look closer to 9%? Here is how post-production deductions actually work.
Legal
The 20-Year Eraser: How Indiana’s Mineral Lapse Act Takes Your Land
Unused mineral rights in Indiana can automatically revert to the surface owner after 20 years. Learn how the Lapse Act works and how to protect your asset.
Legal
The 20-Year Fuse: How Michigan Quietly Extinguishes Severed Mineral Rights
Michigan's Dormant Minerals Act will wipe out your family's severed oil and gas rights after 20 years of silence. Here is how to stop it.
Legal
The “Zombie Lease” Problem: How Your Minerals Get Held Hostage by One Token Well
Why you can't sign a new lease when your old well barely produces, and how to break the legal spell holding your family's minerals captive.
Education
West Virginia Co-Tenancy Leasing: How the 75% Rule Works
In West Virginia, if 75% of your co-owners sign a lease, the operator can drill even if you say no. Here is how the law works and what it means for your leverage.
Legal
Colorado Forced Pooling Notices: Deadlines, Costs, and Owner Options
Ignored a lease offer in Colorado? You might be force-pooled as a nonconsenting owner. Here is how silence costs you money and what to do about it.
Legal
The “Integration Order” You Never Read: Arkansas’ Quiet Forced-Pooling Machine
In Arkansas, silence is an election. How ignoring an AOGC integration order can lock your minerals into a deal you never signed.
Legal