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Worksheet 2

Rights stack worksheet

Mark what you know about each layer of rights on a piece of ground, and see what is still open.

The worksheet treats a tract as layers: the surface, the oil and gas minerals, any lease on them, any split of the minerals by depth, and the wells and easements. Each layer is read from a different record, and the edges can sit in different places.

Plate 1 draws five layers for a made-up tract. The worksheet below lists six, because it keeps wells and easements apart. For each layer you choose one of three answers: you have a name or a detail, you do not know, or you looked and found none. You can add a note on where you read it. The note is listed only when you chose the first answer. With either of the others, anything typed in the note box is left out of the list.

Concept rights stack for one tractFive layers drawn over the same tract: the surface estate, oil and gas minerals, an existing lease, a depth severance, and wells and easements. The owners and boundaries are made up and the layers do not line up with each other, which is the point of the drawing. One tract, drawn from above and then peeled by layer1Surface estatethe ground at the surfaceSurface owner S1farm and pastureSurface owner S2ranch and a road2Oil and gas mineralsthe oil and gas below itMineral owner M1M2 holds partshares may be fractionalMineral owner M33Existing leasea contract over some mineralsLease L1: term and depth clauseread the lease itself4Depth severancea split at a stated depthAbove the stated depth: holder D1Below the stated depth: holder D2stated depth5Wells and easementsrights that cross the layersWell 1Well 2Pipeline easementAccess roadConcept drawing. Owners, lines and wells are made up. The layers are read from different records.Concept rights stack for one tractFive layers drawn over the same tract: the surface estate, oil and gas minerals, an existing lease, a depth severance, and wells and easements. The owners and boundaries are made up and the layers do not line up with each other, which is the point of the drawing. One tract, peeled by layer1Surface estatethe ground at the surfaceSurfaceowner S1Surfaceowner S22Oil and gas mineralsthe oil and gas below itOwnerM1M2 holdspartOwnerM33Existing leasea contract over some mineralsLease L1term and depth clause4Depth severancea split at a stated depthAbove the stateddepth: holder D1Below the stateddepth: holder D2stated depth5Wells and easementsrights that cross the layersWell 1Well 2Pipeline easementAccess roadConcept drawing. Owners, lines and wellsare made up. Each layer is readfrom its own record.
Plate 1Concept drawing. Five layers of rights that can sit on one piece of ground. It shows no real tract.
Depth interval Leave empty if unknown.
1. Surface owner
2. Oil and gas mineral owner or owners
3. Existing oil and gas leases
4. Depth severance
5. Wells
6. Easements and surface use

Your list

The list appears here. Nothing you type leaves this page.

How to read the list

The list has four parts. The last line of every list says that rights status here is only what you typed, and that the list does not say who owns what.

  • Established means you typed a name or a detail for that layer. It is as typed by you and is not checked here.
  • Marked none found means you looked and found none. That is not the same as none existing, and the list says so. The layer also gets a next record to read.
  • Not established means unknown. A layer lands here if you chose Unknown, and also if you chose to give a detail but typed nothing, or typed only a word such as unknown, not sure or n/a.
  • Next record to read names, for every layer that is not established or marked none found, the record to read next. The table gives each one.

You can print the list or copy it to the clipboard. The page does not send it anywhere and does not save it.

The record the list points to for each layer
LayerNext record to read
Surface ownerThe county deed records and the county appraisal district record.
Oil and gas mineral owner or ownersThe county deed records, any reservation or exception in the surface deeds, and probate records where an owner has died.
Existing oil and gas leasesThe county records for the lease or its memorandum, any release, and any unit designation.
Depth severanceThe deeds and leases in the chain, read for any reservation or limit stated by depth.
WellsThe agency well records and the operator records for each well.
Easements and surface useThe county records for recorded easements and any surface use agreement.

Want a person to read the records?

Choose Copy to clipboard on the list, then paste it into the box labeled Anything else we should know on the request form. That box takes up to 3,000 characters. A person at Our Landmen LLC reads every request and answers by email.

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