Both of my parents (now divorced) were born in Sidney, Montana. Each has mineral rights paperwork specific to oil & gas leases in Richland County. Each has records of receiving royalties on these leases. Both parents are now in poor health and do not have much memory of the details of their leases; one appears to be with XTO Energy and the other with Enerplus (sp?). I have been given a box of paperwork with descriptions of the land (Sect, Township, Range, etc.), documents showing the history of the leases as they passed from my grandparents to my parents. Where does one start to learn about the current status of their leases; if they are producing, etc. Currently, I am POA for one parent and will likely have the same situation with the other within the year. Thanks for any resources that I can be pointed to.
http://dnrc.mt.gov/divisions/board-of-oil-and-gas-conservation
I don’t have acreage in Montana, but the first place to look is usually at the state oil and gas board. They have links to producing wells, etc.
Keep all those documents as you will need them. Try posting on the Montana part of the forum for specific areas.
If you parents have capacity, you should visit with a MT atty about probate avoidance strategies.