|
|
|
Strasburger & Price, LLP's energy practice unit includes attorneys with
years of experience handling all types of energy disputes and a wide variety
of energy transactions. The energy dispute expertise includes litigation in
state and federal courts, representation of clients before administrative
agencies, arbitrations, and mediations. The energy transactional capability
includes acquisitions and divestitures of producing oil and gas properties,
financing of energy companies and international energy transactions
(including project finance). Strasburger handles documentation of oil and
gas exploration and development transactions and is involved in the
preparation of traditional energy-related documents such as joint
development agreements, leases, lease assignments, oil and gas purchase
agreements, gas processing agreements, and conveyances of production
payments and net profit interests. In recent years the firm has represented
clients in connection with multi-million dollar mergers and acquisitions and
disposition of interests in all of the oil and gas producing states.
The firm's international experience includes a number of transactions
involving Mexico, including Mexican energy projects and representation of
U.S. oil field service companies in Mexico. Strasburger's strength in
Mexican energy transactions draws on the Mexican lawyers who are part of
Strasburger & Forastieri, which is a joint venture between our Mexico City
affiliate Strasburger & Price, SC and Forastieri Abogados, SC.
Strasburger represents a cross-section of energy clients ranging from
several of the largest energy companies in the world to small independents.
A principal part of our practice relates to the handling of litigation and
transactions for oil field service companies.
The firm's energy attorneys are frequent speakers at seminars and have
authored articles which have been published in several State law school
journals. Our attorneys include two past chairmen of the State Bar's Oil,
Gas and Mineral Law Section and members of the Council of the Dallas Bar
Association's Energy Law Section. In addition, our attorneys have served on
the faculty of Southern Methodist University as an Adjunct Professor of Law,
and on the Southwestern Legal Foundation's Board of Advisors.
|
|
REPRESENTATIVE ENERGY CLIENTS
- American Energy Partners, Inc.
- Apache Corporation
- Atoka Operating, Inc.
- Atwood Oceanics, Inc.
- Baker Hughes, Inc.
- Bank of America, N.A.
- Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi Trust Company
- Burlington Resources, Inc.
- Comerica Bank – Texas
- Compass Bank
- Dominion Exploration and Production, Inc.
- Dockwise USA, Inc.
- Greystone Oil & Gas, L.L.P.
- Grupo KeySpan
- GulfMark Offshore, Inc.
|
 |
- Hunt Oil Company
- Hunt Petroleum Corporation
- J.M. Huber Corporation
- Kerr McGee Corporation
- Kvaerner USA, Inc.
- Magnum Hunter Resources, Inc.
- Mammoet USA, Inc.
- Newfield Exploration, Inc.
- Noble Energy, Inc.
- Oil States International, Inc.
- Pioneer Natural Resources U.S.A., Inc.
- Schlumberger Technology Corporation
- Tauber Exploration & Production Co.
- Tauber Oil Company
- Vintage Petroleum, Inc.
- XTO Energy, Inc.
|
|
|
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Dispute Resolution
- Obtained a favorable decision from the Texas
Supreme Court in landmark oil and gas case establishing that in Texas
there is no implied covenant in an oil and gas lease obligating a lessee
to explore the lease premises for oil and gas.
- Obtained a summary judgment for defendant client
in toxic tort litigation filed in Houston arising from contamination
caused by a West Texas refinery. The Plaintiffs claimed that the
client's ability to control its subsidiary, which was the owner/operator
of the refinery, made our client an owner/operator of the refinery as
well and rendered our client liable for the contamination. The Court,
however, agreed with our position that proof of the exercise of actual
control of such operations is a necessary condition to owner/operator
liability.
- Obtained favorable settlement on behalf of an
overriding royalty interest owner in litigation filed in Dallas against
a producer based upon claims that the producer had improperly deducted
post-production expenses from the revenue owed to our client and had
failed to pay overriding royalty upon all products recovered from the
gas which was subject to the overriding royalty interest. The settlement
led to the sale of the overriding royalty interest to the defendant
producer generating an overall benefit to our client approximately 25
times greater than the amount of the original claim.
- Successfully defended a producer client in South
Texas litigation against claims of surface trespass, field-wide
drainage, failure to develop the lease, and failure to pay market value
royalty on production from the lease. Shortly after deposing the
Plaintiff's expert, the matter was favorably settled on behalf of our
client for approximately 5% of the damages claimed.
- Participated in obtaining a significant recovery
for West Texas producer in action for damages against well service
company.
Transactions
- Successfully defended a large drilling company
in litigation filed in Houston by the United States which alleged that
our client had caused substantial damage to the vegetation and habitat
of the Laguna Madre while transporting a barge rig to a drill site in
the Padre Island National Seashore.
- Successfully argued that our client, the former
majority shareholder of a petroleum refining business was not a
responsible party under the Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act. As a result
of the firm's "control" and "veil piercing" arguments, the Attorney
General of Texas dismissed our client from a unilateral clean-up order
issued under the Texas Superfund Statute.
- Successfully defended a producer client against
claims for breach of an agreement for the sale of producing properties
located in Texas and Louisiana. The matter was arbitrated and a "take
nothing" award was rendered in favor of our client along with a decree
awarding our client recovery of its attorneys' fees and costs.
- Obtained dismissal of litigation filed in South
Texas against a producer client which arose out of our client's sale of
oil and gas leases and an associated surface facility situated in the
Padre Island National Seashore. The suit sought damages for alleged
fraud and contribution and indemnity for the expense of cleaning up
contamination discovered at the site of the surface facility. The
dismissal was based on the Plaintiff's failure to join the National Park
Service which owns and administers the surface rights of the land
involved.
- Successfully defended a producer client in
market value royalty litigation filed with respect to certain East Texas
production. The lawsuit was favorably settled at an early stage after we
demonstrated that the Plaintiff's claim was based upon an incorrect
analysis of the facts.
- Represented an independent producer in the
purchase of $400 million of producing properties situated in multiple
states.
- Represented an independent producer in a $260
million acquisition of producing properties located throughout the
continental United States.
- Represented an independent producer in the sale
of $425 million of producing properties.
- Represented the U.S. security trustee in a
Mexican project finance transaction involving loans aggregating $197
million financing an offshore natural gas compression project.
- Represented a U.S.-Mexico joint venture in its
bid for a natural gas distribution concession in Mexico and its
obtaining of a natural gas transportation permit related to an
industrial park in Mexico.
- Represented an oil field service company in the
series acquisition of multiple companies and assets at an aggregate
value in excess of $300 million.
- Represent a U.S. marine services company in connection with a
Mexican joint venture providing marine services for offshore platforms
of PEMEX.
PRACTICE AREA LEADER
.
PRACTICE AREA MEMBERS
OVERVIEW OF PRACTICE AREAS
|
