LeBar v. Haynie
Decision Date | 13 August 1976 |
Citation | 552 P.2d 1107 |
Parties | George N. LeBAR and Inexco Oil Company, a corporation, Appellants (Plaintiffs below), v. Robert L. HAYNIE et al., Appellees (Defendants below). No 4527. |
Court | Wyoming Supreme Court |
Houston G. Williams of Wehrli & Williams, Casper, and Arthur S. Berner and Robert E. Gill, Jr., Huston, Tex., for appellants.
Morris R. Massey and William F. Drew of Brown, Drew, Apostolos, Barton & Massey, Casper, for appellees.
Before GUTHRIE, C. J., and McCLINTOCK, RAPER, THOMAS and ROSE, JJ.
This appeal arises from a complaint filed by appellants, seeking from the lower court a declaratory judgment holding that an oil and gas lease dated June 28, 1968, under which appellees claim, was void and of no further force or effect and that three later oil and gas leases dated September 13, 1973, under which appellants claim, were valid and in full force and effect and that the lands covered thereby were free of any claims of appellees. The trial court found adversely to appellants, finding that the first lease wsa in full force and effect and that the three later leases were invalid and gave the lessees no right thereunder.
To establish a frame for this case, we shall make a most general and summary statement of the facts, fully cognizant that in the disposal of certain specific issues it will be necessary to engage in a more detailed As in all cases upon an appeal, we shall throughout this opinion not consider or weigh conflicts in the evidence but shall recite the evidence as it appears most favorable to appellees, along with any inferences which spring therefrom, Oedekoven v. Oedekoven, Wyo., 538 P.2d 1292, 1297.
statement of the facts applicable to those propositions.
On June 28, 1968, Paul C. LeBar and his wife, Georgia C. LeBar, executed and delivered to Stoltz & Company an oil and gas lease 1 for a five-year primary term covering 2156.71 acres in Converse County, Wyoming. 2 Appellees claim under and by virtue of this lease and no question is raised that they are not the successors in interest to all rights thereunder.
On September 13, 1973, George LeBar executed and delivered to Inexco Oil Company three oil and gas leases covering the lands here in dispute. All of the leases were properly and seasonably recorded in the office of the county clerk in Converse County, Wyoming. Stoltz & Company paid the annual rental for the five-year period and Stoltz, Wagner, and Brown, successors to Stoltz & Company, made a sixth yearly rental payment to LeBar on March 9, 1973, but discovering their error wrote LeBar, asking that the rental payment be refunded and that they would supply a release of this lease. The money was refunded but no release was ever made. We are not confronted, however, with any claim that this effected the release of the Stoltz lease.
Haynie, who through some arrangement which is not clear in the record but which is not challenged, owned a substantial interest in the lease from the time Stoltz & Company obtained it. To protect his interest, on April 11, 1973, he wrote LeBar, advising him that he and Mayer had an interest in the lease and inquiring if they could obtain an extension or a new lease, and offering a bonus for some arrangement. Haynie followed this up by asking for a reply but LeBar did not respond. The record indicates that from about 90 days prior to this expiration date both Haynie and Mayer engaged in negotiations with various oil firms and individuals and made considerable search for someone to assist in some financing agreement so that a well could be drilled in this lease. These were all unsuccessful, and no definite arrangement was made until June 27, when Haynie was able to interest the Chinook Pipeline Company, which made a commitment and agreement of financial support enabling the drilling of this well. During this period of negotiation Evinger, acting as an agent for Haynie and Mayer, proceeded with certain arrangements, including the staking of a location and a discussion with LeBar and Carl Hageman, who had some right to the surface of this location; and the parties agreed upon an amount to be paid for surface damage for the location, payment for a road right-of-way, and the installation of an auto gate. They agreed that this should be reduced to writing, which was done on June 27 in Mr. Hand's office. Appellees paid the agreed sum of $800 and installed an auto gate under the terms of this agreement. On June 26 Evinger filed an application for a drilling permit with the Oil and Gas Supervisor of the State of Wyoming for drilling a well upon these premises and received verbal approval, although written approval was not issued until July 10. Evinger also made arrangements for dirt work and the digging of a pit on June 25, and apparently made arrangements to secure water for drilling from a neighbor about this time. The original drilling permit set out a plan to drill through the Parkman Formation, or 8000 feet. Evinger also hired Ruby Drilling Company to move upon this location with a so-called water-well rig, which operation was begun before noon on June The term of the Stoltz lease must govern our disposal, and the following provisions are applicabeleto this controversy:
28. Ruby was advised that this was an expiring lease and they were to set surface pipe. That rig drilled a 7 7/8-inch hole to a depth of 94 feet. On June 26 Mayer had made an arrangement with Lohmann and Johnson, who were owners of a large drilling rig, to move upon this location and to drill a well. Lohmann and Johnson moved the major component parts of this rig upon these premises by the evening of June 28. Upon the arrival of this rig the Ruby rig was removed from the hole, and after rigging up the Lohmann-Johnson rig enlarged the hole to 12 3/4 inches in diameter to a depth of 80 feet, and the following day drilled 318 feet in preparation for running the surface casing. These operations were continued with some difficulty, because of lost circulation, until the hole reached a depth of 6744 feet, and the Lohmann-Johnson rig remained on this hole until July 13, when a 5 1/2-inch casing was run to a depth of 6719 feet. When this was completed the rig was released and removed from the location. There were further discussions among the appellees, looking to the testing of this well in the Lewis Formation. They then obtained the so-called Capshaw rig, but after the testing was completed and certain other procedures were taken, the Capshaw rig was removed from the location on August 2 because this rig was not properly equipped to drill to the Teapot Formation and would have to have been modified. During the period from the time of its removal until August 27 no active work was pursued because of the difficulty of obtaining another rig. At that time a completion rig owned by Sing Well Service Company was moved upon the well and various operations were conducted thereon, including the deepening of the well to 7115 feet. Discovery of commercial production haveing been made at that depth, the well was completed as a producer on October 2.
Appellants urge us to reverse the trial court for the following reasons:
I. Appellees did not commence a well during the primary term.
II. Even if the well were timely commenced, it was not drilled with reasonable diligence and dispatch.
III. The LeBar Number One well was completed as a dry hole and subsequently reentered to be deepened.
The trail court found:
To continue reading
Request your trial-
Madrid v. Norton
...of the evidence, they will not be disturbed on appeal. Diamond Management Corp. v. Empire Gas Corp., 594 P.2d 964 (1979); LeBar v. Haynie, Wyo.1976, 552 P.2d 1107, 1110. Moreover, the trial judge was present and observed at first hand the demeanor and expressions of the witnesses. We must n......
-
Hartnett v. Jones
...to evaluate evidence, Ford Motor Company v. Arguello, Wyo., 382 P.2d 886 (1963), or to consider and weigh conflicts in it, LeBar v. Haynie, Wyo., 552 P.2d 1107 (1976). I do not believe the facts of this case relative to laches are conclusively established, sufficiently clear, or of a nature......
-
Zanetti v. Zanetti
...of the evidence, they will not be disturbed on appeal. Diamond Management Corp. v. Empire Gas Corp., 594 P.2d 964 (1979); LeBar v. Haynie, Wyo.1976, 552 P.2d 1107, 1110." 596 P.2d at In True v. Hi-Plains Elevator Machinery, Inc., supra, 577 P.2d at 996, we said: " * * * Unless the findings ......
-
Moats v. Prof'l Assistance, LLC
...question of due diligence is one of fact. Sonat Exploration Co. v. Superior Oil Co., 710 P.2d 221, 225–26 (Wyo.1985); LeBar v. Haynie, 552 P.2d 1107, 1111 (Wyo.1976).Daniel v. State, 2008 WY 87, ¶ 14, 189 P.3d 859, 864 (Wyo.2008) (dealing with whether the State exercised due diligence to le......
-
CHAPTER 16 LEASE CLAUSE FLOW SHEETS
...be said to produce in paying quantities even though profit is small and costs of development may never be recovered. 4. LeBar v. Haynie, 552 P.2d 1107 (Wyo. 1976). In an action to declare invalid an oil and gas lease which required the lessees to commence [Page 16-35] drilling a well within......