Michigan Oil Co. v. Department of Natural Resources

The events giving rise to this case began on October 1, 1968, when defendant Department of Natural Resources’s predecessor in interest, the Department of Conservation, and plaintiff Amoco Production Company’s predecessor in interest, Pan American Petroleum Corporation, entered into two lease agreements. Under the agreements, gas and oil rights were leased to two parcels, referred to by lease numbers 9656 and 9657. These were parts of the state’s opening of the area in the Pigeon River Country State Forest in Otsego and Cheboygan Counties to oil and gas exploration and development. Pan…