Austin Texas Association of Lease and Title Analysts
Webinars are available to view on-demand to all members and paid registrants.
Lance Joiner
Partner, Ray, Feighny & Harlte PLLC
In this webinar, Lance Joiner will cover interpretation issues such as legal ambiguity, canons of construction, elements of the mineral estate, mineral and royalty labels, fixed and fractional NPRIs, the Estate Misconception, double and restated fractions, and Duhig considerations.
Lance’s practice focuses on advising clients in a variety of upstream and midstream energy matters, including acquisitions and divestitures of producing and nonproducing assets; mineral and leasehold ownership disputes; interpretation and drafting of deeds, oil and gas leases, assignments, and various industry agreements; title curative procedures; pooling; PSA/Allocation Wells; regulatory issues; and negotiation and drafting of geothermal energy leases and carbon sequestration agreements.
He has drafted and reviewed hundreds of title opinions, including acquisition, drilling, division order, and supplemental title opinions. He has managed teams of attorneys working in conjunction with landmen, division order analysts, and in-house counsel to conduct extensive title examination and transactional due diligence.
Prior to practicing law, Lance earned his B.A. in Government from The University of Texas at Austin and his J.D. from South Texas College of Law. Following law school, he worked as a petroleum landman and as an attorney with two highly recognized Houston-based oil and gas law firms. He is licensed to practice law in Texas, Ohio, and Nebraska, is Board Certified in Oil, Gas, and Mineral Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, was named a Texas Super Lawyer (2022 and 2023), and was named a Houstonia Magazine Top Lawyer in Houston (2021).
featuring Guest Speaker
Brent Chicken
Member, Steptoe & Johnson PLLC
This presentation will walk attendees through a sample title opinion, discussing each section thereof in detail, and in the process providing attendees with an attorney’s-eye-view of the data and information that should be included and why, the legal opinions that should be present, and the ways in which title opinion recipients can vet the quality and reliability of a title opinion.
Brent is an experienced energy and natural resources attorney with extensive knowledge of the challenges faced by exploration and production, midstream, and downstream/utility companies operating in the energy industry. He regularly represents his clients in complex commercial litigation disputes, business transactions, administrative/regulatory law and procedure, and title examination matters. In his litigation practice, Brent frequently defends his client’s interests in the courtroom, in arbitration, and in mediation related to various mineral matters, including constitutional, contract, and real property issues. For his clients that are undertaking transactions, he provides guidance on the title, due diligence, and contractual issues during the purchase and sale of oil, gas, and mining properties involving mixed fee, state, federal and tribal rights. He prepares accompanying sales, indemnity, surface use, and subsurface penetration agreements.
In the regulatory realm, Brent advocates for his clients before various state and federal oil, gas, and mining agencies; prepares and presents regulatory applications for well spacing, well density, well location exemptions, statutory pooling, flaring, bonding, and mine delineation; undertakes administrative appeals of negative agency decisions and inspections; and defends application protests.
Additionally, Brent regularly prepares comprehensive drilling, division order, and acquisition mineral title opinions involving fee, state, federal and tribal lands. These include, but are not limited to, specialty opinions involving natural gas storage units, solution mining, hard rock mines, and “gob gas" areas. Brent also routinely counsels clients in tackling title curative matters, including negotiating and drafting various mineral and surface title instruments.
Prior to joining Steptoe & Johnson, Brent was a partner at a large national oil and gas firm, and two Denver-based energy firms, focusing on energy and natural resources litigation, oil and gas transactions, administrative and regulatory matters, and title examination due diligence.
*Event topics and speakers are subject to change. The changes will be reflected on this page as far in advance as possible.
PO Box 91412
Austin, TX 78709
atx.alta@gmail.com
Follow us on social media: