News
Welborn Attorneys Named 2017 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
Welborn extends congratulations to John Masterson and Ken Barbe selected as 2017 Mountain States Super Lawyers as well as Alaina Stedillie selected as a 2017 Mountain States Rising Star.
Paris Agreement Exit: Who Holds the Real Power?
President Trump announced on June 1 that the United States is withdrawing from the Paris Agreement. The announcement follows months of uncertainty about whether President Trump would fulfill his campaign pledge to withdraw U.S. participation in the deal (which was...
Welborn Ranked by Chambers USA for 2017
Chambers USA ranks J. Kenneth Barbe in the practice areas of Real Estate and Corporate/M&A in Wyoming, John A. Masterson in the practice area of Litigation in Wyoming, and Keith D. Tooley in the practice area of Natural Resources in Colorado. Additionally,...
Monument Making, the Antiquities Act of 1906 and the Extent of Presidential Power
On April 26, 2017, President Trump issued an Executive Order (“EO”), “Review of Designations under the Antiquities Act,” to address what he called a “massive federal land grab.” The EO directs Interior Secretary Zinke to review all monument designations made under the...
Wyoming Supreme Court Justices Disagree: Were Tax Assessments of Minerals Constitutional?
As noted in a prior blog post, Wyoming’s Supreme Court Justices agree most of the time. In fact, in 2016 more than 95% of the Court’s orders and opinions were unanimous. This post highlights a recent disagreement between the members of the Wyoming Supreme Court in the...
Colorado Legislature Considers Limitations On “Force Pooling”
Rep. Mike Foote (D-Lafayette) and Rep. Dave Young (D-Greeley) introduced House Bill HB17-1336, legislation which would prevent a lessee representing less than a majority of the mineral royalty owners from obtaining a force pooling order. The authors of the legislation...
COGCC: A Balancing Act or “Subject To” Protection of Health, Safety, and Environment – A Surprising Decision from the Colorado Court of Appeals
A recent decision from the Colorado Court of Appeals (“Court”) could mean a new focus for the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC). On March 23, a three-judge panel issued a split decision in Martinez v. Colo. Oil & Gas Conservation Comm'n, 2017...
Sheryl Howe Recognized as a Top 40 Women in Energy
Welborn Shareholder Sheryl Howe has been recognized as one of forty Top Women in Energy by the Denver Business Journal. This is the 4th year the DBJ has named these key influencers in metro Denver’s energy sector. You can read about each of these amazing...
Earthquakes: State Regulation of O&G Injection Wells Is OKOklahoma Judge Dismisses Federal Lawsuit on Jurisdictional Grounds
On Tuesday, April 4, 2017, Judge Stephen P. Friot, United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, dismissed a nationally significant lawsuit brought over earthquakes linked to oil and gas wastewater injection wells on jurisdictional grounds. See...
What’s Up with Chevron and Does it Matter?
If you have paid any attention to the U.S. Senate confirmation process for Colorado’s Judge Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court, you’ve heard Chevron come up. According to Senator Al Franken (D-Minnesota), “For anyone who cares about clean air or clean water or...
Wyoming Wolves De-Listed Under the Endangered Species Act
On March 3, 2017, the D.C. Circuit reinstated the rule promulgated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) in 2012 to remove the Northern Rocky Mountain gray wolf in Wyoming from the endangered species list under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”)....
Employer Alert: Colorado Supreme Court Narrows Employer Liability in Negligence Cases
The Colorado Supreme Court recently issued a decision that significantly reduces an employer’s liability in cases where both the employer and the employee are sued for injuries caused by the employee while performing job duties. In Ferrer v. Okbamicael, 2017 CO 14,...