Several months ago I was contacted by an oil company to lease mineral rights in Burke County North Dakota that I inherited from my father. The call came out of the blue, I did not know anything about these mineral rights-- although several years ago I was contacted by a different oil company regarding mineral rights in another section in Burke County that I inherited.
I believe my father bought these mineral rights in the 50's, but I am not sure. Is there any way to do a title search to find other mineral rights that he owned and that I have now inherited. I feel certain that there are probably lots more. When he died he left no records regarding mineral rights that he owned.
Thank you, Alex
Alex, Ouch! If your dad purchased and recorded the minerals in that time frame and he did not claim or lease them in the last 20 years, you would have to go to the county courthouses and look at the books or hire it done and that could be expensive. If something was leased or claimed in the last 20 years, an NDRIN recorders network subscription could help, or at least provide negarive evidence if a surface owner tried and succeeded to your dad's mineral interest. Wish I could be of more help.
When he died he left no records regarding mineral rights that he owned.
He had NO records? None? Then it's going to be very hard. You are going to be looking for a "needle" which is your father's purchase, and the "Hay Stack" is all of the US, depending on where your father bought.
BUT it's not a total lost cause. Your father came about minerals in Burke county. He also filed this in Burke County, ND, which is where and how the Oil Companies found his name, and came looking for him and found you.
You need to get a copy of what your father filed in Burke County. Hopefully it will be a mineral deed that hopefully again will list all that your father bought, at least at that one purchase. This recorded document is public information, and can be obtained from the Burke County Clerk and Recorder's office. You will need the Township, Range and section information from the oil company, so you can start the search. The oil company MAY (or may not) have a copy on hand of your father's mineral deed.
Thank you for your helpful reply.
I have the location for the three sections that the oil companies contacted me about. I did file a statement of claim for all three, and I did not see any claims for those sections on the NDRIN site--so hopefully I'm ok. I also signed a lease agreement with Oasis for one of them, received my bonus check, and put that in the bank! Apparently Oasis just got a permit to drill in that area, so we shall see...
Thank you again for taking the time to reply.
r w kennedy said:
Alex, Ouch! If your dad purchased and recorded the minerals in that time frame and he did not claim or lease them in the last 20 years, you would have to go to the county courthouses and look at the books or hire it done and that could be expensive. If something was leased or claimed in the last 20 years, an NDRIN recorders network subscription could help, or at least provide negarive evidence if a surface owner tried and succeeded to your dad's mineral interest. Wish I could be of more help.
Thank you so much for this helpful information.
I guess the only way to find out more is to actually go to the courthouse....That could be quite the adventure!
My dad died in '83. I assume at that time he probably thought the mineral rights weren't worth much, or didn't think about them at all. Who knows...
Thanks again, much appreciated!
Daniel Dayton said:
When he died he left no records regarding mineral rights that he owned.
He had NO records? None? Then it's going to be very hard. You are going to be looking for a "needle" which is your father's purchase, and the "Hay Stack" is all of the US, depending on where your father bought.
BUT it's not a total lost cause. Your father came about minerals in Burke county. He also filed this in Burke County, ND, which is where and how the Oil Companies found his name, and came looking for him and found you.
You need to get a copy of what your father filed in Burke County. Hopefully it will be a mineral deed that hopefully again will list all that your father bought, at least at that one purchase. This recorded document is public information, and can be obtained from the Burke County Clerk and Recorder's office. You will need the Township, Range and section information from the oil company, so you can start the search. The oil company MAY (or may not) have a copy on hand of your father's mineral deed.
Alex,
Before you drive out to the courthouse, ND mineral ownership information may be available online. Contact me directly if you would like more information.
Charlie,
Thank you very much for replying. Any ideas are most welcome.
I'm not sure how to contact you directly, though.
Alex
Charlie said:
Alex,
Before you drive out to the courthouse, ND mineral ownership information may be available online. Contact me directly if you would like more information.
I'll send you the info in a private message.
Charlie