CHEYENNE MIN. AND URANIUM COMPANY v. Federal Resources Corp.

694 P.2d 65, 1985 Wyo. LEXIS 427
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 21, 1985
Docket83-69
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 694 P.2d 65 (CHEYENNE MIN. AND URANIUM COMPANY v. Federal Resources Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
CHEYENNE MIN. AND URANIUM COMPANY v. Federal Resources Corp., 694 P.2d 65, 1985 Wyo. LEXIS 427 (Wyo. 1985).

Opinions

ROSE, Justice.

This contract-interpretation case requires an examination of the impact of unanticipated agreements concerning the subject matter of the contract, which agreements were entered into by the party whose performance is deemed to be due. Appellant Cheyenne Mining and Uranium Company (CMU) brought this action against appel-lees Federal-American Partners (FAP) and its member corporations, seeking to rescind a contract for the purchase and sale of certain unpatented mining claims, or in the alternative to enforce the contract’s terms. During the trial to the district court, the judge ruled that appellant’s exhibits, offered to show bad faith on the part of FAP, were inadmissible. .Following three and one-half days of testimony, the trial court took the matter under advisement and subsequently entered a judgment awarding CMU $3,306 under the contract provisions, plus accrued interest and costs. On appeal, CMU contends that the trial court’s interpretation of the contract improperly limited its award and further asserts that the trial court erred in refusing to admit pertinent evidence and to grant rescission.

We will reverse.

On November 1, 1957, CMU as “Owner,” together with named individuals designated “Locators,” entered into a “Contract of Purchase and Sale” with Vitro Minerals Corporation as “Purchaser” for the conveyance of unpatented uranium mining claims located in Natrona County. The contract was subsequently assigned to FAP, which concedes to being bound by its terms.

In executing the contract, the owner and locators agreed to “convey, quitclaim and assign” all interest in and to the mining claims to the purchaser, “under and upon, nevertheless, the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth.” The terms and conditions set forth in paragraph 4, relating to owner’s participation, are pertinent to this appeal:

“4. OWNER’S PARTICIPATION: For and in consideration of the Assignment and Conveyance to Purchaser of Owner[’]s interest, the Purchaser covenants and agrees to pay to the Owner, its successors, assigns or legal representatives, a sum constituting forty per cent (40%) of the annual net profits from all uranium, vanadium and other associated minerals and ores mined, produced and sold from the property, computed in accordance with and under the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth. In addition, it promises and agrees to perform a minimum of 20,000 feet of drilling upon the property at such locations and in such manner as may be deemed advisable by it within twelve months after the 15th of July, 1957.
“a. COMPUTATION: Net profits shall be arrived at by deducting from gross proceeds those items listed upon the schedule of deductions hereto attached as Exhibit A[1]
“b. BASIS FOR GROSS PROCEEDS: Gross proceeds shall include the proceeds from ore sold based upon prices established in Circular 5 Revised, or, in event that such schedule should be supplemented by another, the schedule (hen in effect or the market price then current for such ore; it shall not include the proceeds from the operation of any concentration or milling opera[68]*68tion or benefication process which might be erected upon the property or erected, owned or operated by the Purchaser.
“c. TIME FOR PAYMENT. Distribution of net profit shall be made quarterly and within thirty days after the close of such quarter. For the purpose of such distributions, such quarterly periods shall end on the last day of March, June, September and December of each year. The Purchaser at its option, may make such distributions at the end of each month. If the quarterly distributions exceed the Owner[’]s share of the annual net profits as determined at the end of each calendar year, Owner shall repay Purchaser such excess or Purchaser may deduct such excess from future payments due Owner.
“d. ACCOUNTING: Each distribution of net profit shall be accompanied by a true, correct and complete accounting statement, showing the factors entering into the distribution made, all in accordance with standard accounting practices employed under the schedule hereto attached and with the terms of this instrument.
“GENERAL: The provisions hereinabove made with respect to the Locators for availability and examination of records, statement, or Declaration of Interest, and time and responsibility for payment, shall be applicable to the distribution of net profit to the Owner.
“f. MINIMUM PAYMENT: During this agreement, Purchaser will work the property diligently and in minerlike fashion with the object of discovering, producing and marketing commercial ores. Within sixty (60) days after Purchaser develops a commercial deposit of ore ready for extraction, it shall pay Owner a minimum of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) per month as net profits therefrom, which payments shall be a credit upon any and all of Owner[’]s share of net profits as herein defined. Such minimum payments shall cease when such ore body has been exhausted unless another ore body has been developed and made ready for extraction. * * *” (Emphasis added.)

On April 27, 1973, FAP entered into two agreements with Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which agreements provided for the development of numerous mining properties owned or controlled by FAP in the Gas Hills Mining District, including the claims subject to the 40% annual-net-profits interest held by CMU. The principal agreement, designated “Mining Lease Agreement,” contains the following grant:

“A. For and in consideration of good and valuable consideration and of the covenants and agreements herein contained, Lessor [FAP] hereby grants to the Lessee [TVA] and the Lessee’s successors and assigns for the term hereinafter provided the exclusive right to explore, develop, mine, extract and remove from the Mining Properties all uranium and other fissionable source materials, including associated minerals, in, on, under, or upon the said properties and thereafter to retain all right title and interest in and to all such severed minerals. Lessee shall also have the right to use so much of the surface of the Mining Properties as may be reasonably required to conduct exploration, development, mining and milling activities.”

As consideration to FAP, the agreement specifies in Article III the following royalty payments:

“Lessee agrees to pay Lessor the following royalties:
“A. As concerns 6,000,000 pounds of ⅞08 contained in reserves upon the Mining Properties and presently classified as Indicated Ore, Lessee shall pay Lessor Seven Million dollars ($7,000,000), payable:
“(1) Four Million Five Hundred Thousand dollars ($4,500,000) at closing; and
“(2) Two Million Five Hundred Thousand dollars ($2,500,000) on or before January 1, 1979.
“B. As concerns 2,400,000 pounds of U3O8 contained in reserves presently classified as Inferred Ore (over and [69]*69above the said 6,000,000 pounds referred to in A above), an amount equal to sixty-two and one half cents (62½⅞:) per pound of UgOg in that category determined by March 31, 1975, to be Indicated Ore, up to and until a maximum of One Million Five Hundred Thousand dollars ($1,500,-000) is owed to Lessor. Said royalty payment shall be made on or before March 31, 1975. * * *

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CHEYENNE MIN. AND URANIUM COMPANY v. Federal Resources Corp.
694 P.2d 65 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 1985)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
694 P.2d 65, 1985 Wyo. LEXIS 427, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cheyenne-min-and-uranium-company-v-federal-resources-corp-wyo-1985.