Moore v. Texas Oil & Gas Corp.

580 S.W.2d 133
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 5, 1979
DocketNo. 5962
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 580 S.W.2d 133 (Moore v. Texas Oil & Gas Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Moore v. Texas Oil & Gas Corp., 580 S.W.2d 133 (Tex. Ct. App. 1979).

Opinion

OPINION

JAMES, Justice.

This is an appeal from a summary judgment. Plaintiff-Appellants Paul J. Moore and Bill M. Doyle brought this suit against Defendant-Appellee Texas Oil and Gas Corporation, same being No. 909 in the trial [134]*134court and hereinafter referred to as “the case at bar.” In said suit Plaintiffs alleged that in 1959 Alamo National Bank of San Antonio, Trustee, as Lessor, made an oil and gas lease of 28,115.48 acres of land located in McMullen and La Salle Counties, Texas, known as the Washburn Ranch, to Shamrock Oil and Gas Corp., as Lessee. Said lease was for a primary term of five years, with the further provision that after the end of the primary term, said lease should remain in force only so long as operations for the drilling or deepening of a well are conducted upon the subject land, with no more than ninety days elapsing between the completion of drilling or deepening operations on one well and the commencement of drilling or deepening operations on another well. Plaintiffs (a geologist and petroleum engineer respectively) further alleged that during 1965, and while said lease was still in effect, they (Plaintiffs) obtained a farmout of certain rights in said 1959 lease from Shamrock, and drilled several wells on the land embraced by the lease; that in 1971, one James A. Clements negotiated with the original lessee (who was then Diamond-Shamrock Oil and Gas Corp., the successor to Shamrock), to purchase the 1959 lease from Diamond-Shamrock. However, Diamond-Shamrock would not sell the lease unless Plaintiffs Moore and Doyle agreed to relinquish their farmout rights. Plaintiffs further alleged that said Clements as a limited partner and agent for GLM, Ltd., offered to enter into an agreement with Plaintiffs set forth in a letter dated April 22,1971, hereinafter fully quoted, whereby the Plaintiffs agreed to relinquish their farmout rights from Diamond-Shamrock, and in return GLM, Ltd. agreed to do the following things: (1) commence an exploratory well on subject premises on or before May 10, 1971 (2) assign to Plaintiffs jointly a 1/32 of 8/8ths overriding royalty interest, and (3) if GLM, Ltd. should elect to discontinue drilling operations on successive wells, to notify Plaintiffs of such election, and on request by Plaintiffs, GLM agreed to assign all its right, title, and interest therein back to Plaintiffs. Plaintiffs further alleged that pursuant to and in reliance upon this agreement they relinquished their rights under their farmout, and in turn GLM, Ltd. conveyed a 1/32 of 8/8ths override to Plaintiffs and timely commenced the subject well; that GLM never elected to discontinue drilling operations on successive wells and therefore were not requested to assign the original lease back to Plaintiffs.

Plaintiffs go on to allege that in February of 1976, Alamo Bank, the Lessor, brought suit in Cause No. 881 in the District Court of McMullen County (hereinafter referred to as “the former case”), to cancel the 1959 lease; that thereafter, Texas Oil and Gas Corporation, Defendant in the case at bar, entered into an agreement with the lessor (Alamo Bank) whereby Texas Oil and Gas agreed to prosecute Cause No. 881 in an effort to cancel the oil and gas lease and spend up to $500,000.00 to accomplish such purpose; and afterwards, Texas Oil and Gas intervened in Cause No. 881. Plaintiffs allege that during the pend-ency of Cause No. 881, Texas Oil and Gas knew about GLM’s obligation to assign the original lease to Plaintiffs upon the election of GLM to discontinue drilling operations; but nevertheless, in spite of all this, Texas Oil & Gas proceeded to, and did, purchase all the interests of GLM and its successors in the original lease, and then abandoned the lease to Alamo Bank and acquiesced in the cancellation of said lease. Plaintiffs further allege that when it became obvious that Texas Oil and Gas was going to release the original 1959 lease back to Alamo Bank, principally for the purpose of wiping out the 1/32 override of Plaintiffs, that Plaintiffs made timely demand upon Texas Oil and Gas to assign to Plaintiffs the original lease, which Texas Oil and Gas refused to do; that on the same day the release by Texas Oil & Gas to Alamo Bank of the 1959 lease was recorded in McMullen County, Texas Oil & Gas recorded a new lease from Alamo Bank to Texas Oil & Gas, granting similar leasehold interests to Texas Oil & Gas as had been contained in the original 1959 lease.

[135]*135Based upon the above alleged facts, Plaintiffs contended that Texas Oil and Gas has been unjustly enriched at Plaintiffs’ expense by releasing the original 1959 lease to Alamo Bank and receiving a new lease with the effect of wiping out Plaintiffs’ 1/32 override, and thereby Plaintiffs sought equitable relief therefor to establish a constructive trust upon the new lease for Plaintiffs’ benefit; and in the alternative; Plaintiffs sued for $5,000,000.00 damages. Then by way of Supplemental Petition, Plaintiffs alleged that Defendant Texas Oil & Gas tortiously interfered in the business relationship between Plaintiffs on the one hand, and GLM, Ltd., James Clements, Guy L. Mann (a partner in GLM), and Alamo Bank on the other, and by virtue of Defendant’s wrongful and unconscionable acts, Plaintiffs have suffered damages.

Defendant-Appellee Texas Oil & Gas set up an answer consisting of a general denial, not guilty, and the following affirmative defenses: statute of frauds, res judicata, estoppel by judgment, estoppel by deed, the parol evidence rule, and good faith purchaser for value.

Defendant-Appellee Texas Oil & Gas moved for summary judgment, which motion the trial court granted and entered summary judgment that Plaintiff-Appellants Moore and Doyle take nothing, from which Plaintiff-Appellants appeal.

Plaintiff-Appellants assert in three points of error that the summary judgment is improper because the record presents genuine issues as to material facts, and the Defendant-Appellee is not entitled to judgment as a matter of law. We sustain these contentions, and thereby reverse and remand the cause for trial on the merits.

In order to understand the posture of the case at bar, it is necessary to review the former case, to wit, Cause No. 881, wherein Alamo National Bank of San Antonio, Trustee, sought to cancel the 1959 oil and gas lease hereinabove referred to. In the former case, Alamo Bank as Plaintiff-Lessor named as parties defendant the various parties claiming an interest in said lease, including Moore and Doyle (Plaintiffs in the case at bar), as well as the partners in GLM, Ltd. In this connection the three partners in GLM, Ltd. were one Volk, James A. Clements, and Guy L. Mann. In the intervening time Guy L. Mann, the general partner in GLM, Ltd., died, and his heirs were made parties defendant in the former case; in addition thereto, the limited partnership had been dissolved. Moore, Doyle, the Mann Estate, and Clements appeared and answered in the former case.

The summary judgment proof in the case at bar shows a written contract between Alamo Bank and Texas Oil and Gas dated April 15, 1976, the substance of which was to the effect that Texas Oil and Gas agreed to assist Alamo Bank in getting the 1959 lease cancelled, and agreed to spend up to a half million dollars in such efforts, and in the event Alamo Bank was successful in Cause No. 881 (the former case) in getting the lease cancelled, that Alamo Bank agreed to execute and deliver a new oil and gas lease on the subject property to Texas Oil and Gas as lessee, giving to Texas Oil and Gas similar rights and benefits as were provided for in the original 1959 lease.

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Related

Pine v. State
921 S.W.2d 866 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1996)
Bell v. Moores
832 S.W.2d 749 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1992)

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Bluebook (online)
580 S.W.2d 133, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/moore-v-texas-oil-gas-corp-texapp-1979.