News
Which way is the legislative wind blowing for Wyoming energy taxes?
Two interesting bills are making their way through the Wyoming Legislature this session, both concerning the State’s main source of tax revenue – the energy industry. The Legislature’s taxation treatment of oil and gas and wind energy may tell us how elected...
One step forward, but maybe two back, on common law marriage under Colorado law?
Colorado is one of only a handful of states that still recognize the concept of common law marriage today. It remains a crucial concept in the administration of estates in Colorado because a common law spouse is entitled to inherit real property and receive other...
EPA’s Maui Draft Guidance: Industry Left Wondering, “What is a ‘functional equivalent’ of a regulated direct discharge?”
As reported in our prior post about County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, the Supreme Court punted on providing clear guidance to the regulated community on when a Clean Water Act Section 402 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”) permit is...
What’s Next: Producers’ Ability to “Just Say No” to Gas Gathering Agreements in Bankruptcy
Our recent post, “Gas Agreements Rejected For Not Running With Land,” described decisions of the Delaware bankruptcy courts concluding that upstream producers in Wyoming and Colorado could reject gas gathering agreements, including the gas dedication and minimum...
Gas Agreements Rejected For Not “Running With Land,” Part I in a two part series
The last quarter of 2020 has brought with it two important rulings from the Delaware bankruptcy court. Applying real covenant law in the states of Wyoming and Colorado, the two decisions concluded that the terms of the specific gas gathering agreements at issue did...
Liens, Taxes and Bankruptcy in Wyoming – Oh My! 2020 Changes to Ad Valorem Tax and Lien Law
There is a sign near the Casper airport that reads: “Oil and Gas Pay Most Our Taxes.” In a State with no income tax, no franchise tax, no transfer taxes and low sales tax rates, the sign sums up a known truth: taxes on mineral production are the primary revenue...
Welborn Named Among the Best Law Firms of 2021
Welborn was named among the 2021 “Best Law Firms” recently published in U.S. News & World Report, earning a Tier 1 ranking in Colorado in Natural Resources Law, Energy Law, Oil & Gas Law, Commercial Litigation, Administrative/Regulatory Law, and Water Law and...
Welborn Advises Orion Mine Finance and Sweetwater Royalties in Acquisition of Oxy Land Grant Assets for $1.33 Billion
Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley advised Orion Mine Finance and Sweetwater Royalties in connection with the acquisition of Occidental Petroleum Corporation’s Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah Land Grant assets for approximately $1.33 billion. The assets include...
Ken Barbe Selected as President-Elect of the Wyoming State Bar
Congratulations to Welborn shareholder Ken Barbe, who was recently selected as the President-Elect of the Wyoming State Bar. Read more at https://www.wyomingbar.org/barbe-elected-president-elect-of-wyoming-state-bar/
Did Congress inadvertently close the door on easing the listing of the Gunnison Sage Grouse?
Did Congress inadvertently close the door on easing the listing of the Gunnison Sage Grouse? In the Cromnibus (FY 2015 appropriations) Congress in a rider prohibited Interior from writing or issuing any final listing rule under Section 4 of the Endangered Species Act...
14 Welborn Lawyers Named as Best Lawyers in America®
Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley is pleased to announce that 14 Welborn lawyers were recently included in the 2021 edition of the Best Lawyers in America®, which is based on a peer-review survey of professional expertise. Congratulations to Hampton O’Neill, who was...
How do you know if you need a federal permit when you discharge pollutants into groundwater? “That’s your problem,” Supreme Court says.
On April 23, 2020, a divided Supreme Court ruled in County of Maui, Hawaii v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund that the Clean Water Act (“CWA”) “requires a permit when there is a direct discharge from a point source into navigable waters or when there is the functional equivalent...