I have a will drawn up by a lawyer dividing everything equally among my three children with the eldest being the executor. I am concerned about the best way to leave the mineral rights and/or earnings off these mineral rights. Anyone have any suggestions?
Hi James,
Mineral interests ie. OGM, have to be deeded separately and individually just as surface acreage is.
Jenn
I am not an attorney, but having seen wills (WV) involving OGM interests, if you say that everything is divided equally, that includes your OGM interests. Your executor informs the companies with which you are leased, and of course the County Clerk's office in the county (or counties) where these interests lie. The clerk's office tells your executor what exact procedure to follow. Each oil and gas company has a procedure for transferring interests via a will.
If you wanted to transfer title before you die, but retain the income, that can be done by deeding to your 3 children and retaining a life estate. Talk with your attorney if you wanted to do that.
You could call the County Clerk's office any time and ask what the procedure is, and leave that information with your eldest. If procedures change, at least there is a place to begin.
My sister and I have done this with our parents' wills. A lot of steps, but not really hard. If the entire estate is large (I don't know exact $ amount, but millions I think) it might get more complicated.