Akin Gump Obtains Texas Court Ruling on Behalf of Yates Energy Corporation in Case of First Impression
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(Houston) – A team from Akin Gump obtained a complete victory in the Texas 4th District Court of Appeals in San Antonio on behalf of Yates Energy Corporation in a dispute over conflicting claims to valuable mineral rights in the heart of the Eagle Ford Shale oil field. The key issue at stake in the matter was a statutory construction issue of first impression, and the ruling makes new law that will have a significant impact in resolving similar title disputes.
The case in question turned on the interpretation of a Texas statute authorizing the use of correction deeds to make material changes to a deed. The statute requires such a correction deed to be executed by “each party to the original instrument … or, if applicable, a party’s heirs, successors, or assigns.” The dispute centered on who was the proper party to a correction deed where there had been an intervening conveyance by the original grantee. Broadway Bank argued that the legislature intended the term “if applicable” to mean that a correction deed can be executed by either the original parties, or if an original party is unavailable, then that party’s heirs, successors or assigns. Yates Energy argued that “applicable” parties could only mean the current owners of the interest in question.
The Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that Yates Energy’s interpretation was correct, and, therefore, that the correction deed in question was invalid to defeat Yates Energy’s title acquired from the original grantee prior to that party’s execution of the correction deed.
Akin Gump oil and gas partner Michael Byrd, along with consultant and former justice on the Court of Appeals for the 1st District of Texas Murry Cohen and litigation senior counsel Heather Peckham, represented Yates Energy in the matter.
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP is a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
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