Tawes v. Barnes

In this case, which arose from an oil and gas lessor’s claim for unpaid royalties, we consider the construction and application of a Working Interest Unit Agreement (WIUA) and a Joint Operating Agreement (JOA). The issues come to us on certified questions from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The Fifth Circuit asks first whether the lessor here, either as a third-party beneficiary or through privity of estate, can enforce the WIUA and JOA to recover unpaid royalties from an investor who consented to the drilling of two wells on a pooled gas unit, but did not operate…