Home/Texas Supreme Court/Imperial American Resources Fund, Inc. v. Railroad Commission of Texas

Imperial American Resources Fund, Inc. v. Railroad Commission of Texas

557 S.W.2d 280, 59 Oil & Gas Rep. 553, 20 Tex. Sup. Ct. J. 513, 1977 Tex. LEXIS 275, 1977 WL 365219
CourtTexas Supreme Court
DecidedSeptember 27, 1977
DocketB-6513
StatusPublished
Cited by123 cases

This text of 557 S.W.2d 280 (Imperial American Resources Fund, Inc. v. Railroad Commission of Texas) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Texas Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Imperial American Resources Fund, Inc. v. Railroad Commission of Texas, 557 S.W.2d 280, 59 Oil & Gas Rep. 553, 20 Tex. Sup. Ct. J. 513, 1977 Tex. LEXIS 275, 1977 WL 365219 (Tex. 1977).

Opinion

DANIEL, Justice.

This is a direct appeal from a trial court judgment upholding the validity of a Railroad Commission Rule 37 Order and denying plaintiff’s request for an injunction against the Commission and the holder of the Rule 37 Exception Permit from proceeding under the order.

The plaintiff, Imperial American Resources Fund, Inc., filed this suit against the Railroad Commission and BTA Oil Producers on October 12, 1976, attacking the validity of an order of the Commission dated September 20,1976, granting the Rule 37 Exception Permit for BTA to drill a gas well on its 644.16 acre JV-P Riggs lease in the Gomez (Ellenburger) Field in Pecos County. The Gomez Field Rules adopted in 1967 permitted one gas well on each 640 acres and provided that no well is to be drilled nearer than 1980 feet to any property or lease line. Under these Field Rules and the Commission’s Statewide Rule 37, exceptions to these distances may be permitted upon the Commission’s determination “that such exceptions are necessary either to prevent waste or to prevent the confiscation of property.” 1

BTA Oil Producers applied for an exception so that it might drill in the northeast portion of its lease at a location 1320 feet instead of 1980 feet from its north and east lines. It alleged that such location was necessary to penetrate the area of higher structure and good sand permeability and thus obtain a reasonable opportunity to produce the hydrocarbons under its lease. BTA further alleged that it would otherwise suffer confiscation through net uncompensated drainage by wells on adjacent tracts. Imperial American, owner of a 640 acre lease adjoining the BTA lease on the north, opposed BTA’s application for the exception. See map on following page for relative locations.

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Bluebook (online)
557 S.W.2d 280, 59 Oil & Gas Rep. 553, 20 Tex. Sup. Ct. J. 513, 1977 Tex. LEXIS 275, 1977 WL 365219, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/imperial-american-resources-fund-inc-v-railroad-commission-of-texas-tex-1977.