Ohio surface owners with old reservations: You might own your mineral rights

In 1989 Ohio passed  code 5301.56 which dealt with dormant mineral rights. This law was also updated in 2006 which is what most people might be familiar with. The original law passed in 1989 listed saving events that had to happen in order for the mineral rights not to vest back with the surface rights. It required no notification or action to be taken by surface owner. If you own surface rights to a  property  that had no saving events between 1969 and 1989 you could possible own the mineral rights right now. A surface owner used this argument in 2010 after the 2006 amendments to the dormant mineral rights acts had passed requiring notification to mineral owner. The surface owner proved through title and affidavits no saving event occured between 1969 and 1989 and therefore they now owned the mineral rights and the judge ruled in their favor. Case is Wiseman vs Potts. THe defendents in case tried to argue the amended  statue required notification but  plantiffs argument was successful because the mineral rights had automatically vested back in 1989.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Belmontlandowner on January 12, 2012 at 9:57am

I have been reading the forums looking for anyone who may have gone this route in order to regain their mineral rights and I have been unable to find any who have tried. What I am hearing from many land owners is that they really don't know if they own their mineral rights and are waiting for the G&O companies who they sign a lease with to find out for them. I don't know if that is wise as I would think that if the rights are owned by someone else the G&O company will either contact the mineral rights owner on record for a lease or will simply walk away from the lease deal because the deed isn't 'clean'.  I doubt that the G&O people are going to go to bat for the surface owner in regaining the mineral rights as this could be costly. If anyone has already been through this process and can shed some light on the outcome for the rest of us that would be much appreciated. There are alot of unknowns out there.....

Permalink Reply by Hunter on January 12, 2012 at 11:10am

If you know your title history and you have old reservations pre 1969 and nothing happened in the next 20 years you might legally own the minerals. In the Wiseman vs Potts case there was 4 deeds recorded on the sale of property after 1969 that mentioned the old reservations but since the minerals where not "the subject" of the title transaction they did not count as a saving event.

Permalink Reply by Belmontlandowner on January 12, 2012 at 11:26am

That is good news !!!

Permalink Reply by Belmontlandowner on January 13, 2012 at 3:03am

Where did you read the court record for the Wiseman vs. Potts? I have been trying to locate a copy of it but can't find it anywhere. Can you send me the link for it if you have one?

Permalink Reply by Hunter on January 15, 2012 at 3:40am

I received it from an attorney.  I sent you a pm. thanks

Permalink Reply by Hoodwinked2 on May 7, 2012 at 11:31am

Hunter , Could you send me a copy of this record?

Permalink Reply by Hunter on May 7, 2012 at 3:50pm
Permalink Reply by Inchworm antenna on January 19, 2012 at 7:27am

How do you get minearl rights back if the property is in a storage field and the person reserved them back in the 40's.  Just being in a storage field is a saving event, but I'd bet since the 40's the mineral owner is long gone.  Is there any way to get the mineral rights back in that situation?

thx

Permalink Reply by Finnbear on January 24, 2012 at 3:44am

If the property is in a storage field, what legal device put it into storage? Was there a drilling lease previous that was converted to storage? Was there a storage lease? Who currently collects the storage fee/royalty?

Permalink Reply by Inchworm antenna on January 24, 2012 at 1:09pm

we get the storage fee but In 1940 when the deed transfered the mineral rights were retained. 

The original storage lease on the property was signed back in 1905 by owner #1.

owner #2 retained mineral rights in 1940.

owner #3 signed an updated storage lease in 1967.

owner #4 always got the storage fee after he purchased in 1970.

We're owner #5 and now we get the storage rental fee.

I'd like to lease the prop but was told mineral rights were reserved in 1940.  And of course being in a storage field prevents the minerals from being reclaimed by surface owner, so I guess we're stuck.  Any ideas?  Thanks.

Permalink Reply by Finnbear on January 24, 2012 at 3:33pm

ORC 5301.56

The mineral reservation you have described can be preserved indefinitely by the use as storage.

(B)(3)(c) states: The mineral interest has been used in underground gas storage operations by the holder.

See below:

(D)(1) A mineral interest may be preserved indefinitely from being deemed abandoned under division (B) of this section by the occurrence of any of the circumstances described in division (B)(3) of this section, including, but not limited to, successive filings of claims to preserve mineral interests under division (C) of this section.

Permalink Reply by Finnbear on January 24, 2012 at 3:42am

I used the ORC and the Affidavit of Abandonment process on two properties last year.

One had reservations from the 1930's and I got those rights back.

The second had reservations from the 1940's and 1974. I got the rights back on the 1940's reservation but the heirs of  the 1974 reservation answered the legal notice and filed an Affidavit of Preservation and I did not get those rights back.

Are you saying that based on the 1989 law, those rights automatically vested back with the property? How does the 2006 revision affect that?. I was told that the only way to apply the 1989 version would be to assert it between 1989 and 2006.

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