Property Provisions of the Joint Operating Agreement: An Update for the New 2015 Form JOA

Authors

Alex Ritchie, University of New Mexico - School of LawFollow
Gary B. Conine, University of New Mexico - School of Law

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 2018

Abstract

The joint operating agreement (JOA) in the oil and gas industry helps coordinate joint operation efforts that facilitate exploration and unitization of tracts, and conservation of a depleting resource. Professor Conine’s 1988 article expanded, limited, and defined the property interests of the parties both inside and outside the contract area. This article is an update to those prior works with greater emphasis on the 1989 Form JOA, cases and developments since its publication, and the implications of the revisions to the JOA in the new 2015 Form JOA published by the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL).

The purposes of this Article are to review and examine: (1) the various provisions typically included in the JOA that affect the property interests of the parties, (2) how these provisions are used to structure the operating agreement, (3) the ways in which these provisions are used to protect the integrity of the transaction during its protracted term and promote fair dealing among the parties through restrictions on transfers and acquisitions, and (4) the legal issues that often arise with respect to the validity and enforceability of these provisions.

Publication Title

Texas Tech Law Review

Volume

50

Issue

3

First Page

489

Last Page

571

Keywords

American Association of Professional Landmen

Recommended Citation

Alex Ritchie & Gary B. Conine, Property Provisions of the Joint Operating Agreement: An Update for the New 2015 Form JOA, 50 Texas Tech Law Review 489 (2018).
Available at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/law_facultyscholarship/649