Mineral Rights Assignment To Attorney?

General Mineral Rights Discussion
1

Question On Mineral Rights Assignation To Attorney

Based on the recommendation of a relative, I recently signed an agreement with her attorney friend and former classmate to represent me in leasing my land's mineral rights to an oil and gas company.

As opposed to paying him for services upfront, I granted him a 20% interest from my incoming 1/4 royalty, of which I intended to end with the lease's termination.

I also did all of the research (the attorney did NO research) and I posed questions from the research for the attorney to take to and negotiate with the oil and gas company.

But he insisted that he would protect me and not to worry about any of the issues I had presented for negotiation.

In essense, aside from getting a 1/4 royalty (minus the attorney's 20%), I have signed a standard "Producer 88" contract with the Oil and Gas company due the attorney's failure to negotiate my points.

I received a $7,850 signing bonus and a $300 per mineral acre deal.

The oil and gas company's landman even asked me if it was my intention to sign over 20% of my 1/4 interest to this attorney. I also learned that the attorney is not a specific Oil and Gas attorney, but is a general practitioner.

However, my biggest concern is that in the agreement with the attorney, it appears that I have signed over the 20% forever, as opposed to the 20% ending with the lease at the end of its three years as I intended.

As such, the first paragraph reads as follows:

"For adequate consideration, Grantor, named above, grants, sells, and conveys to Grantee, named above, an undivided 20% interest in all of the oil, gas, and other minerals in and under and that may be produced from the following lands (the "Lands") in the county and stated named above:"

I am posting to learn if this particular paragraph in this agreement can be rescinded or modified to include a date that terminates the attorney's 20% concurrently with the termination of the lease and/or if there is any alternative recource I may take.

Can this also be considered a "deceptive practice" or can the agreement be voided or modified through the attorney's lack of including a specific date? Can this action be reported to the state bar?

I would greatly appreciate any advice anyone can give me.

Thanks,

kl

P. S. At this point, I am thinking that the "wolf" is the attorney I should have been watching more closely than the Oil & Gas landman.

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Did you talk to the attorney about this and what did the attorney say?

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No, I have not yet. Was hoping to get great advice here before doing so, and thank you who have replied thus far.

Buddy Cotten said:

Did you talk to the attorney about this and what did the attorney say?

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Thanks, Mr. Preston…much appreciation.

kl

Ted Preston said:

Kenny,

You should certainly report the attorney to the state bar, or whatever agency exists for attorney discipline in your state. Based on what you wrote, the attorney may have been operating under a conflict of interest, and the state bar and disciplinary agency will want to investigate. Attorneys are absolutely NOT permitted to take advantage of their own clients like this. When you hire an attorney, you have a right to expect that the attorney will serve YOUR interests, not his own.

The disciplinary committee may well order that the transfer of your mineral rights to the attorney be rescinded.