Bentley v. Potter

STEWART, Justice.

The defendant appeals from a judgment against him in the amount of $19,375.46 for breach of a mining lease. The appeal raises various issues of contract law.

In May 1978, the plaintiffs L.P. and Clarice Bentley (“the lessors”) leased fourteen unpatented placer mining claims on federal land in Juab and Tooele Counties to the defendant Lowell Potter (“the lessee”). By the terms of the lease, the lessors agreed to register the mining claims with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The lessee agreed to do the annual assessment work on the fourteen claims. Federal law requires the…