EOG Resources, Inc. v. Soo Line Railroad Co.

2015 ND 187, 867 N.W.2d 308, 2015 N.D. LEXIS 202, 2015 WL 4275258
North Dakota Supreme Court·Decided July 15, 2015·No. 20140122·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinions

McEVERS, Justice.

[¶ 1] Soo Line Railroad Company and G-4, LLC appeal from a summary judgment declaring Soo Line does not own an interest in the minerals in and under certain Mountrail County property and G-4 does not hold a valid leasehold interest in the property. Soo Line and G-4 argue the district court erred in finding seven private deeds conveyed only easements and not a fee simple title to Soo Line’s predecessor-in-interest. We reverse and remand.

I

[¶ 2] EOG Resources, Inc. has an interest in an oil and gas leasehold estate in Mountrail County and operates oil and gas wells. Soo Line is a railroad operating in North Dakota. G-4 has oil and gas exploration leases with Soo Line.

[¶ 3] EOG brought an action to quiet title to minerals in and under certain Mountrail County property against Soo Line, G-4, and other defendants claiming an interest in the property. EOG sought a declaration that Soo Line and G-4 have no interest in the minerals in and under the disputed property.

[312]*312[¶ 4] Soo Line answered and brought counterclaims against EOG and cross-claims against the other defendants. Soo Line alleged it obtained a fee simple title to the surface and minerals in the disputed property through a deed executed in 1914 by Henry Olson conveying a legal interest in the property to Soo Line’s predecessor in interest, Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railway Company. Soo Line requested a judgment quieting title and declaring Soo Line is the fee simple owner of the property and recognizing G-4’s leasehold interests in the property.

[¶ 5] G-4 filed a separate answer and brought counterclaims against EOG and crossclaims against the other defendants. G-4 requested the court also quiet title to the mineral interests in and under fifteen additional tracts of land. G^4 alleged Soo Line obtained a fee simple title to the surface and minerals in the original disputed property as well as fifteen additional tracts of land in Mountrail County through conveyances under the March 2, 1899 Act of Congress, a condemnation order, and seven deeds. The seven deeds were executed in 1914, 1915, and 1916 by Henry Olson, William and Lu Blatt, Dewar and Rose Grant, Hans and Thea Larson, Olaf and Dina Faro, Joy Kline, and John and Inger Trana conveying an interest in certain property to Soo Line’s predecessor in interest. The parties did not argue these deeds were involuntary and there is no evidence in the record indicating the deeds were made in lieu of condemnation. G-4 sought to quiet title and requested a judgment declaring Soo Line is the fee simple owner of all of the Mountrail County property in dispute and G-4 has a leasehold interest in the property. Soo Line filed an answer to G-4’s cross-claims and requested a judgment quieting title and declaring it is the fee owner of the Mountrail County property, including the original disputed property and the fifteen additional tracts of land, and recognizing G-4’s leasehold interest in the property.

[¶ 6] The other defendants filed separate answers to EOG’s complaint and Soo Line and G-4’s cross-claims, aligning with EOG. They requested the court declare Soo Line and G-4 have no interest in the minerals in and under the disputed property-

[¶ 7] G-4 and Soo Line moved for partial summary judgment on the interests conveyed under the condemnation order and private deeds. EOG also moved for summary judgment, arguing judgment should be entered in its favor because the railroad acquired only an easement under the 1899 Act, the condemnation order, and the deeds. Soo Line and G-4 responded and stipulated that the railroad acquired only an easement under the 1899 Act.

[¶ 8] After a hearing and based on the parties’ stipulation, the district court partially granted EOG’s motion for summary judgment and dismissed G-4’s claims related to the 1899 Act. The district court deferred ruling on the motions for summary judgment on the remaining claims until all record owners with potential claims related to the mineral interests for all of the disputed property were joined to the proceeding.

[¶ 9] G-4 filed an amended counterclaim and cross-claim adding numerous third-party defendants with potential claims to the mineral interests. The third-party defendants filed answers to G-4’s amended counterclaim and cross-claim.

[¶ 10] Soo Line and G-4 moved for summary judgment, requesting the district court quiet title to the remaining disputed property in Soo Line’s favor, and declare that Soo Line owns a fee simple interest in the surface and minerals in the property conveyed by the seven deeds and the condemnation order and that G-4 has a valid [313]*313leasehold interest in the mineral interests by way of an oil and gas lease with Soo Line. Soo Line and G-4 argued the deeds are unambiguous and convey a fee simple interest to the railroad as a matter of law, and the court should find Soo Line owns the condemned property in fee simple because the condemnation order expressly conveyed the property to Soo Line in “fee simple.”

[¶ 11] EOG and several third-party defendants (collectively “EOG parties”) also moved for summary judgment, requesting the district court quiet title in their favor and declare Soo Line owns only an easement across the surface of the remaining disputed property. The EOG parties argued they were entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law, the railroad acquired only an easement under the seven deeds and condemnation order, Soo Line does not own the minerals in and under its railroad right of way, and G-4 did not acquire a leasehold interest in the minerals through its oil and gas lease with Soo Line.

[¶ 12] After a hearing on the motion, the district court denied Soo Line and G-4’s motions for summary judgment and granted the EOG parties’ motion for summary judgment. The court concluded the condemnation order granted Soo Line an easement over and across the property. The court also concluded the private deeds conveyed only an easement to Soo Line’s predecessor-in-interest. The court found there were no material facts in dispute and the deeds were more indicative of a grant of an easement than of fee simple title based on the case law the parties cited in support of their arguments. The court found all of the deeds include language that is consistent with a grant of fee simple title because they all include the same granting, warranty, and habendum clauses, but the language was not necessarily conclusive of a grant of fee title. The court found that each of the deeds included the phrase “right of way” in the title and the inclusion of that language creates an uncertainty about what the grantors intended to convey. The court considered other factors in determining the deeds conveyed an easement, including the size and shape of the conveyed interest, the purpose of the conveyance, a provision in the deeds releasing the railroads from certain claims for damages, and extrinsic evidence. A judgment was subsequently entered.

II

[¶ 13] The standard for reviewing summary judgments is well established:

Summary judgment is a procedural device for the prompt resolution of a controversy on the merits without a trial if there are no genuine issues of material fact or inferences that can reasonably be drawn from undisputed facts, or if the only issues to be resolved are questions of law. A party moving for summary judgment has the burden of showing there are no genuine issues of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

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EOG Resources, Inc. v. Soo Line Railroad Co., 2015 ND 187, 867 N.W.2d 308, 2015 N.D. LEXIS 202, 2015 WL 4275258 (N.D. 2015).

2015 ND 187 (EOG Resources, Inc. v. Soo Line Railroad Co.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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