Oct 31, 2007 2:50 pm US/Central
Lawsuit Filed Over North Texas Gas Leases
FORT WORTH (AP) ―
A lawyer who claims landowners haven't been paid promised lease bonuses has sued a developer in one of the first big lawsuits involving the gas-drilling boom in north Texas.
Fort Worth lawyer John Hart said he would seek class-action status for his lawsuit against developer Leonard Briscoe Sr. and his company, Glencrest Resources. In the lawsuit, Hart said hundreds of landowners are affected.
Hart claimed that Briscoe told homeowners last December that they would be paid $3,000 bonuses within 45 days of signing leases to allow drilling on their land, and that drilling would be done by April.
The lawyer said his client, Pamela Ellis of Fort Worth, still hasn't been paid the bonus, and that she hasn't received royalties because the well hasn't been drilled.
Briscoe did not return a call for comment from The Associated Press, and no one answered at Glencrest's number.
Glencrest has filed 100 mineral-rights leases in Tarrant County, including Fort Worth, and Briscoe has said he has signed about 3,000 leases. Hart said he was seeking to cancel those leases for nonpayment.
In recent years, drilling operators have rushed into Fort Worth and surrounding areas after the discovery of a big natural gas field called the Barnett Shale. Companies are drilling under Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, a horse racing track and in suburban neighborhoods.
(© 2007 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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