Interpreting Mineral Reservations in Louisiana February 12, 2017 Ryan Telep Introduction Over the past decade, the courts have considered whether a reservation of minerals “for a period of ten years” establishes a mineral servitude subject to a fixed term or is simply a restatement of the default prescriptive period of Read more…
Oil Pipeline Regulation: The Current Patchwork Model and an Improved National Solution February 2, 2016 Colin P. O’Rourke “Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil.” – J. Paul Getty[1] Introduction The United States of America’s reliance on foreign oil is shrinking.[2] This is due largely to technological advances allowing Read more…
Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage: The Newest Conservation Phenomenon September 2, 2015 What Is Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage? Whenever a person drew a breath four hundred years ago, about 280 molecules out of every million that entered his lungs were carbon dioxide.[1] Today, every breath you take contains 400 molecules Read more…
Fractured State of Affairs: St. Tammany Parish Government v. Welsh, Louisiana’s Opportunity to Weigh in on Preemption of Municipal Regulation Touching Oil and Gas Exploration March 25, 2015 Introduction One need only perform a simple Google search to quickly see the growing volume of ink being spilled at the national Read more…
Cirque du Cheniere: The Legal and Regulatory Acrobatics of Sabine Pass LNG Export February 23, 2015 Introduction Following technological advances in hydraulic fracturing, the United States has seen a renaissance in its domestic natural gas industry and supply. This increased supply, combined with growing global demand for imports, has provided Read more…
Reconciling Louisiana Mineral Code Articles 76 and 77 February 2, 2015 There is a hole in Louisiana mineral law. Put bluntly, the poor legislative drafting of Louisiana Mineral Code articles 76[1] and 77[2](“article 76” & “article 77”) created an unnecessary ambiguity concerning the conveyance of reversionary interests in mineral servitudes. Article Read more…
Changing Direction: How Regulatory Agencies Have Responded to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (Part II of II) December 8, 2014 Editor’s Note: This is the second installment of Mr. Theriot’s discussion on the changing landscape of United States offshore regulations in the wake of the BP-Horizon oil spill. The first Read more…
Changing Direction: How Regulatory Agencies Have Responded to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (Part I of II) November 19, 2014 I. Introduction The Deepwater Horizon oil spill, also referred to as the BP oil spill, occurred on April 20, 2010 and is considered the largest marine oil spill in the Read more…
Recent Events in New York That Will Affect the National Fracking Debate September 24, 2014 Much like other states with vast natural resource deposits, New York has faced tensions regarding the practice of unconventional horizontal hydraulic fracturing (fracking). Two recent events have changed the landscape of natural resource exploration in Read more…
Rule 76a: Could Texas Courts Solve the Secrecy-Science Dilemma in Fracking Disputes? September 10, 2014 When a Texas family won their lawsuit against Aruba Petroleum in April,[1] anti-fracking activists hailed the victory as “landmark.”[2]True, virtually every lawsuit alleging harms caused by fracking has settled, generally out-of-court and subjects to a confidentiality Read more…