Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates
P.C.
75 Ponce De Leon Ave NE Ste 101
Atlanta,
GA 30308(470) 294-1674
www.garymartinhays.com
By Steven M. Taber | July 25, 2017
On March 28, President Donald Trump signed the presidential executive order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth. This executive order hopes to be the catalyst to "unleash America's $50 trillion in untapped shale, oil and natural gas reserves, plus hundreds of years in clean coal reserves." And by doing so, it aims to make the United States the global leader in fossil-fuel production and achieve not just "energy independence," but "energy dominance"—a phrase that was front and center during the Trump administration's (June 26–30, 2017), "Energy Week."
By Nichole Morford | The Legal Intelligencer | July 25, 2017
In The Legal's Energy/Environmental Law supplement, read about EPA budget cuts, endangered species and project planning, and the scope of the ERA.
By Matthew G. Brouse and Phillip T. Glyptis | July 25, 2017
Anyone associated with oil and gas development has probably had a conversation about what constitutes a trespass, and whether there is an improper taking associated with drilling activities.
By Margaret Anne Hill, Michael L. Krancer, Frank L. Tamulonis III and Stephen C. Zumbrun | July 13, 2017
On June 20, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued its opinion in Pennsylvania Environmental Defense Foundation (PEDF) v. Commonwealth, 2017 Pa. LEXIS 1393 (Pa. June 20), in connection with the so-called Environmental Rights Amendment or ERA (Article 1, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution). Suffice it to say, the opinion has reopened the debate as to the meaning of the ERA, and more importantly, how the ERA is implemented as a practical and legal matter. In brief, the court ruled that amendments to the state's fiscal code (which sought to address budgetary shortfalls by redirecting money from a fund containing rents and royalties from oil and gas leases on commonwealth land to the general fund) violated the ERA. While the facts before the court were narrowly drawn, the court used the opportunity to revisit the decades old "test" applied in evaluating ERA claims, an issue it first addressed in its 2013 plurality opinion in Robinson Township v. Commonwealth, 83 A.3d 901 (Pa. 2013). It abruptly rejected the well-established Payne v. Kassab test and roughly 45 years of ERA-related case law, thereby placing the ERA, and industry, back into legal limbo. Despite some legal uncertainty, this opinion should not be interpreted as a major stumbling block to key energy and infrastructure projects.
By Stefanie Burt | July 13, 2017
Royalty class action litigation continues to move forward in federal courts in Pennsylvania. Currently pending cases have challenged different kinds of royalty clauses, different kinds of marketing relationships, and different aspects of the royalty calculation on a variety of legal theories, including breach of express contract, breach of implied covenants, and good faith and fair dealing claims, among others. Recently, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania issued two opinions relating to motions to dismiss filed by a lessee and its affiliated-buyer of natural gas in Canfield v. Statoil USA Onshore Properties, Civil Action No. 3:16-0085, (M.D.Pa. March 22, 2017), where lessors filed a putative class action challenging the calculation of royalties, as well as the relationship between the lessee and its affiliated buyer, on a number of different bases. The district court's ruling on the motions to dismiss and its subsequent ruling on the lessor's motion for reconsideration made very clear that the specific language in the oil and gas lease is a dispositive factor in resolving these disputes.
By Jim Saunders | July 12, 2017
Nearly a year after a state regulatory commission approved controversial new water-quality standards, an appeals court ruled that a pulp-and-paper industry group should be able to challenge the measures.
By Lizzy McLellan | July 10, 2017
With the hire of a former member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and two Schiff Hardin lawyers, Reed Smith has built a group focused on helping clients navigate FERC regulations.
By Zack Needles | July 7, 2017
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court will not review a divided en banc Commonwealth Court's ruling that state courts have jurisdiction over disputes arising under the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act.
By Cheryl Miller | July 6, 2017
California and seven other states on Thursday moved to defend Obama-era ozone pollution standards that Attorney General Xavier Becerra said may be left to die under Scott Pruitt's leadership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
By thelegalintelligencer | The Legal Intelligencer | June 30, 2017
Trial court erred in denying appellants' motion for summary judgment, in their declaratory judgment action over royalty payments, because court erroneously interpreted the lesser interest clause included solely in appellants' modification of the original 1928 oil and gas lease. Reversed.
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