April 13, 2018 – On April 13, 2018, the Supreme Court of Texas issued opinions in two landmark oil-and-gas appeals—Endeavor Energy Resources, L.P. v. Discovery Operating, Inc., Cause No. 15-1055, and XOG Operating, LLC v. Chesapeake Exploration Ltd. Partnership, Cause No. 15-0935.  Both cases examined the amount of acreage “earned” by an oil-and-gas operator—for use after the expiration of the contract’s primary term—by successful development of a mineral lease within the contract’s primary term.

In both cases, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals.  And in both cases, the Supreme Court focused on the proper plain-language construction of the text of the applicable contract between the parties as understood in the context in which the parties contracted.

DGC’s Jad Davis, Ryan Clinton, and Jill Pennington represented Discovery Operating in Cause No. 15-1055, and DGC’s Jad Davis, Ryan Clinton, and Jacob Davidson represented Chesapeake Exploration in Cause No. 15-0935.