News
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,...
Welborn Attorneys Named as 2017 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
Welborn attorneys Keith Tooley, Kendor Jones, Rebecca Watson, Brian Tooley, Laura Lindley, and William Rapson have been named to the 2017 Colorado Super Lawyers list. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team...
Update to February 11, 2016 Post: Weed and Water – Can Water Be Used for Marijuana Cultivation in Colorado
Last Year, WSMT blogged about whether water could be lawfully appropriated for Marijuana cultivation. 2/11/16 post. We provided three arguments why that would be allowed. Almost exactly a year later, the Division water referee agreed In Re High Valley Farms, LLC,...
Wyoming Legislature Rejects Attempts to Penalize Wind Energy Industry
In a state that has been described as having “world class wind,” a boast hard to ignore during a winter that featured days upon days of wind gusts reaching 80 mph at times, wind energy has struggled to find a secure toehold due to the vice-like grip traditional...
After Years of Planning, the Forest Service Approves Arapahoe Basin’s Ski Area Expansion (WAHOOOO!)
On March 3rd, the attorneys of Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley will embark on our annual ski trip to Arapahoe Basin in the White River National Forest. We look forward to the trip as a highlight of each winter season and, if we’re being honest with ourselves, a...
Nonconsenting Owner in a Colorado Oil and Gas Well Must First Pursue Claim for Payment of Proceeds of Production at COGCC – not District Court
A recent Colorado Court of Appeals decision involves two parts of the statutes regarding the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (Commission): the pooling statute and the statute regarding payment of proceeds of production. In Grant Brothers Ranch, LLC v....
Proposed Public Land Sale Falls to Public Opposition
On February 1, 2017, Representative Jason Chaffetz (UT-R) announced that he would pull a bill proposing to sell more than 3 million acres of public land. It was easy to lose track of this sea-change proposal amidst the flurry of activity at the advent of the Trump...
What Happens After the Nomination? How a Nominee becomes a Supreme Court Justice
On January 31, 2017, President Trump nominated Judge Neil M. Gorsuch, a Coloradan and judge on the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals (“Tenth Circuit”), to fill the open seat on the United States Supreme Court that has been empty since Justice Antonin Scalia died on...
Rebecca Watson Served as Program Co-Chair for the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation’s Special Institute on Advanced Public Land Law
Welborn Shareholder Rebecca Watson served as Program Co-Chair for the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation's Special Institute on Advanced Public Land Law - The Continuing Challenge of Managing for Multiple Use. The Institute was held in Santa Fe, New Mexico January...
Hoping to Fish or Boat on Utah Waters? The Utah Supreme Court May Soon Clarify Your Access Rights.
After nearly a decade of uncertainty, Utahans and visitors alike are looking forward to certainty on two key issues: (1) public access to and (2) navigability of the Beehive State’s premier rivers. It all started with Conatser v. Johnson, where the Utah Supreme Court...
Colorado Supreme Court Limits How Transbasin Water May Be Used and Holds That Unjustified Non-Use of Water Rights Will Count Against Water Users When They Change Their Water Rights
The Colorado Supreme Court recently addressed two previously unsettled issues that will impact other water users in Grand Valley Water Users Ass’n v. Busk-Ivanhoe, Inc., 14SA303 (2016). First, the Court held that imported transbasin water may not be stored in the...