An operator realized that the Ownership is different in one of the small tracts under a HZ wolfcamp consolidated unit. The owner has gotten several thousand $ per month and now the operator wants to hold his revenue in suspense until its all paid back and has sent him a corrected DO. He was overpaid about $300,000. What can the owner do? Negotiate with the company? demand that they take his money out of suspense for now and take (the money he owes) it out later? Do nothing? Sue the Operator or fashion a payment plan?
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Why would a person want something they are not entitled to? He can try to negotiate something different, but the operator is more than likely in the right to withhold payment until the arrears are made up. Just think of the person that is owed that money that he was paid?
I would be interested in what triggered the “overpay” - do you have any idea? what is being requested to change on the DO and how long of a period was this “overpay” taking place?
I have been involved in two similar situations. The first overpayment was created by an incorrect pay title opinion and the second was the fault of keying errors creating the internal pay decks. It took about a year to convince the title attorney a correction was required and concluded when the operator was convinced I was correct.
The disbursing company filed action to recoup the funds. During discovery the keying error was uncovered and we found out the correct mineral owners had been fully paid prior to the action. The judge ruled in our favor because the mineral owner didn’t create the incorrect payouts.
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