Landowners and Gas Leases: What are your rights?
On Thursday, May 30 at 7 PM at St. Matthews Episcopal Church (408 South Main Street, Horseheads, NY), join Fleased, People for a Healthy Environment, Inc., Citizens Campaign for the Environment, and Citizens for Healthy Communities. For more information, see flyer below or contact FleasedNY@gmail.com
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The Sanford-Oquaga Area Concerned Citizens (S-OACC) is sponsoring an educational workshop to inform you of your legal rights concerning lease termination, force majeure, insurance, and real estate implications should you chose to sell your property.
When: Monday May 6, 2013
Time: 6:30-8:30 PM
Where: Deposit Central School auditorium
Who: Presenters Attorney Joe Heath and Founder Ellen Harrison of FLEASED.org
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Thank you to those of you who helped organize or were able to make it to the very well-attended Chenango Fleased Forum on Lease Termination.
If you were unable to make the event, or would like to recap what was discussed, a video is provided online at
http://othervoicesotherchoices.blogspot.com/2013/03/fleased-forum-on-gas-lease-termination.html
At the forum, Fleased founder Ellen Harrison and Attorney Joseph Heath shared information on landowner’s rights and lease termination. Topics included: the implications of gas leases on insurance coverage, property uses, and mortgages; whether it is possible to sign a “good lease”; how Norse’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing affects the leases that they currently hold; lease assignments; and what the recent force majeure decision in Binghamton means for expired or soon-to-expire leases.
If you have any questions or comments regarding the forum, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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Many landowners have received certified letters from Chesapeake after November of last year. All these letters have identical text, but slightly different dates. A sample of this letter is included as part of this packet. Many landowners have also received similar letters from Norse or any other gas company.
In the case of correspondence with Chesapeake, these letters make invalid claims that Chesapeake’s “interest in your Lease shall not terminate until December 31, 2013, . . . in accordance with the AOD.” This reference is to the June 12, 2012 Agreement between Chesapeake and the Office of the NY state Attorney General (AG), to settle an investigation into deceptive leasing practices. This Agreement, also known as an Assurance of Discontinuance or AOD, does NOT give the company any right to extend your lease’s primary term, if it has already expired.
These letters also make another invalid claim, in the 4th paragraph, which begins: “During the time that your Lease is extended on the grounds of force majeure arising out of the SGEIS process . . . .” Chesapeake’s claim of force majeure extension of other gas leases was unequivocally rejected by the federal court in Binghamton, on November 15, 2012, in the Aukema decision; and this claim of force majeure extension was drafted before that decision and is no longer valid.
Fleased, working with an experienced gas lease attorney, has developed a method for challenging the invalid lease extension claims in these letters: We are prepared to assist landowners in filing consumer fraud complaints with the AG’s office.
In order to assist you in this process, we need:
1. A copy of your lease
2. A copy of all correspondence with the gas company (Here is a sample)
3. A brief note giving the attorney who works with us at no charge permission to act on your behalf (“I would like attorney Joe Heath and Fleased NY to act on my behalf regarding the force majeure claim.”)
Send these items to Fleased as soon as possible.
You can send them to Renostry1@gmail.com and cc fleasedNY@gmail.com, but if you cannot get them online then sending a hard copy is acceptable. Please mail to Ellen Harrison, Fleased, 2050 Ellis Hollow Road, Ithaca, NY 14850.
By signing the form you are agreeing that Fleased and Attorney Joe Heath can make the complaint on your behalf to the Office of the AG. Upon receipt of these materials, we will work with the attorney to file the complaint on your behalf and send you a copy of the final complaint package.
It is our anticipation that either the gas company will continue to agree to file a release of lease for each complaint filed, or that the AG will understand that this is a widespread problem, amounting to a deceptive business practice, that needs a more comprehensive agreement with the company.
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Oxford, NY—Concerned Residents of Oxford is holding FLEASED FORUM/Chenango County, an informational forum for Chenango County landowners regarding gas lease issues. Landowners in neighboring counties are also invited to attend. The forum will take place on Thursday, March 14th, 6:30 pm, at United Church of Christ, 11 West Main Street, in Norwich. The event is free and open to the public. Note on parking: Please park on street, in public parking lots, or in County Office Building lots, not in Church parking lot.
Geologist Ellen Harrison and Attorney Joseph Heath, of Fleased.org, will present information on landowner’s rights concerning a range of topics including: the implications of gas leases on insurance coverage, property uses, and mortgages; whether it is possible to sign a “good lease”; how Norse’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing affects the leases that they currently hold; lease assignments such as overriding royalty interests and reciprocal capacity agreements and how they impact current leases; and what the recent force majeure decision in Binghamton means for expired or soon-to-expire leases in Chenango County.
Landowners wishing to terminate their gas leases will hear what they need to do to officially cancel a lease at the end of the primary term. Clearing the land records usually falls to the landowner. Landowners who are not in active gas leases are cautioned to check their deed papers to verify if there was ever a gas lease on their property. Even a decades-old lease remains a liability for the current landowner if not properly released by the gas company and filed as such with the County Clerk’s office. Forum attendees will hear what steps can be taken by a landowner in this situation.
Following their presentations, Harrison and Heath will take questions from the audience.
For further information contact: Concerned Residents of Oxford, PO Box 631, Oxford, NY 13830
email: concernedresidentsofoxford@gmail.com
tel: 607.226.6483 (Mina Takahashi)
FLEASED FORUM/Chenango County is organized by Concerned Residents of Oxford, and co-sponsored with CDOG and C-CARE.
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Over the past few months, some gas companies have begun to relinquish expired leases. To determine whether a gas company has filed a release notice for your lease, visit your county clerk’s office and ask for assistance in navigating their records. Record systems often vary between counties. For example:
As always, if you have any questions or would like assistance, feel free to contact us at fleasedNY@gmail.com.
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Gus Van Sant’s Promised Land accurately portrays the way landmen mislead people into signing gas leases.
Fleased is an organization intent on providing a voice for fellow landholders who leased mineral rights before we knew that shale gas exploitation threatened our land, air, water, and communities. Fleased supports real people who live with the aftermath of the manipulation and misleadings of landmen represented in this film.
If you plan on seeing the Promised Land, how about handing out some Fleased brochures after the movie?
Click here for a black and white version, or here for the color copy, and provide an opportunity for landholders to find support. Let us know how it goes at FleasedNY@gmail.com, and please contact Ren at Renostry1@gmail.com with any questions!
Enjoy the film!
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