Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP a long history of involvement in natural resources law and has developed broad based mining, oil and gas, and environmental law practices. We are regularly recognized as a premier natural resources firm in the region. As the country's energy focus expands to include hydraulically fractured natural gas, renewable energy, and nuclear industries, the Rocky Mountain West will continue to be a hotbed of energy production and natural resources contention.
Attorneys at DGS are experienced in all types of matters involving natural resources including brownfields, coalbed methane development, environmental law, mining, oil and gas, public lands, renewable and alternative energy, toxic tort litigation, uranium mining and development, and water law.
We offer clients extensive knowledge in transactions, permitting, public lands issues, health and safety concerns, regulatory compliance, legislation, litigation, and other aspects related to natural resources concerns.
Litigation
Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP has a long and successful history of natural resources litigation before administrative agencies and courts of all levels. We practice before the Interior Board of Land Appeals and state oil and gas commissions or mining reclamation boards, and we handle natural resources cases before state and federal trial and appellate courts, including the United States Supreme Court. Our experience in this area also includes arbitration of price renegotiations, royalty claims, and other matters arising under natural resource contracts. Our clients are predominantly companies and individuals involved in development of natural resources including oil and gas, precious metals, coal, uranium, industrial minerals, wind and solar, and water. Adverse parties often include government agencies, others in the client’s industry, production purchasers, royalty owners, vendors or contractors, neighboring landowners, or environmental groups.
Our lawyers handle cases involving every issue that can arise in natural resources development. They seek to protect the client’s ability to pursue its natural resource project in litigation to obtain surface access, obtain or defend leases, permits or other agency actions, and quiet title. They handle disputes over interpretation and performance of agreements including joint operating agreements, leases, surface use agreements, supply contracts, and agreements with vendors and contractors. Disputes often include issues regarding allocation of revenues and costs among participants in a project. Defending royalty claims as well as claims by neighbors for nuisance, trespass, and interference with wells (water, or oil and gas) are an important part of the natural resources litigation practice. Tax assessments have been the focus of some of our recent cases. Many of our cases concern interpretation and application of NEPA, FLPMA, the Mineral Leasing Act, the Federal Coal Leasing Amendments Act, the National Forest Management Act, MSHA, SMCRA, federal land grant statutes, the Endangered Species Act, as well as other statutes and regulations affecting development of natural resources on public and/or private lands.
Clients benefit from our lawyers’ in-depth knowledge of natural resource industries and the issues that concern those industries. In appropriate cases, our trial lawyer will team with one of our business lawyers who is a daily participant in the particular natural resource industry. Our lawyers are also active in industry trade associations as well as groups like the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation that connect and inform outside and in-house lawyers.
