Mineral Ownership Case Resolved: ND Supreme Court Rules In Favor Of Family -- August 28, 2020

Note: earlier in the Bakken, this was a big court case -- "high water mark" vs "low water mark." I never knew the story would get that big, and unfortunately I did not have a good tag for this issue. The closest I have is the "riparian" tag.  One can also search "egregious" on the blog, and also "land grab."

This was a top story of 2019:

The most egregious story to come out of the Bakken:

• North Dakota Supreme Court sides with state on mineral royalties;

From top stories, week 23, 2020:

Top North Dakota energy story:

• Land grab by the state (previously posted); see Geoff Simon's lead-off story;

From top stories, week 39, 2018:

Land grab:
NDIC accepts "ordinary high water mark study" results: the state owns 9,500 more acres than originally shown by the US Army Corps of Engineers; mineral owners along the river between New and Williston may find they don't have as many acres as they once thought they did

Others:

"Land grab" revisited.

 Original Post

 From Geoff Simon's top ND energy stories:

Wilkinson Mineral Ownership Case Resolved

ND Supreme Court Says Family Owns the Rights

Other Lakebed Mineral Claims Expected to be Filed

A long-standing case regarding ownership of minerals inundated by Lake Sakakawea has been resolved by the North Dakota Supreme Court in favor of the families that filed the claim.

The lawsuit dates back to 2012 when William Wilkinson and other plaintiffs sued the Land Board to determine ownership of the minerals under land they conveyed to the Corps of Engineers for construction and operation of the Garrison Dam, but reserved the minerals rights under the property. The state resisted the claim, arguing that the water that inundates the Wilkinson property is caused by the meandering Missouri River and not Lake Sakakawea.

The court determined that subsequent legislation passed by the 2017 Legislature (SB 2134) to define the ordinary high water mark of the Missouri River before the dam was built validated the Wilkinson claim. State law distinguishes land below the high water mark as that which "the high and continuous presence of water has destroyed its value for agricultural purposes, including hay land."

A lawyer representing the Wilkinsons was quoted by the Bismarck Tribune this week saying that the family is owed more than $1 million in oil and gas royalties now held in an escrow-type count, and that the case would likely result in hundreds of additional claims for millions of dollars.

Click here to read the Supreme Court decision.