Resources

07/09/2021

The 2021 field landman seminar and the Santa Fe Land Institute will be held on July 29-30, 2021 in Santa Fe. Find out more about these events here.

Texas Tech Launches NEW Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies (MSIS) in Energy Degree Program 

10/15/2020

Texas Tech launched their new Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies (MSIS) in Energy degree program earlier this Fall, and the student response to the quality of the program has been outstanding. The program started with the Oil & Gas module this Fall, which will be followed by Renewables in Spring 2021, Energy Law & Policy in Summer 2021, and Energy Commerce in Fall 2021. The program is designed for maximum flexibility with all courses offered online and two weekend, in-person visits on campus each semester. Because the program offers a “rolling” admission, students can enroll at the beginning of any semester and start earning their degree right then.

Find out more about this outstanding program at: http://www.depts.ttu.edu/gradschool/Programs/energy/

09/28/2020

The 2020 Mining Law Summit of the University of Arizona’s Global Mining Law Center will be held as a virtual event on November 6, 2020.  This year’s program and topic will address “New Frontiers in Community Engagement and Sustainable Development of Mineral Resources” and includes (1) a discussion of those metals that will be needed to meet new uses, (2) the sustainable development concerns of the World Bank, (3) the status of the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance, (4) a discussion of current issues and (5) a presentation of the use of social media to respond to community concerns. 

As a result of health concerns, this year’s Summit will be held virtually and no charge will be required to register/participate.  You will have to register, however, so please go to:
https://law.arizona.edu/mining-law-summit

The format for the Summit will include recorded presentations with an opportunity to submit questions and provide comments to the speakers either after the individual presentations or at a wrap up session.

08/10/2020

I’m saddened to announce that a treasured friend, Mary Viviano, passed away in her Lookout Mountain home on August 6 after a short, courageous battle with cancer, surrounded by her loving husband Bill Witt and her cherished son, Erik Laitos.

Mary loved her work for the Foundation. She served as the Foundation’s Secretary and on its Board of Directors and Trustees Council, chaired the Foundation’s most important committee, the Special Institutes Committee, for four years, served as the program chair for three special institutes, served on a total of 13 committees over almost 30 years, and authored or co-authored six papers. For her tireless support of its educational mission throughout her career, she was appointed an Honorary Trustee. Mary’s involvement with the Foundation was more than just professional; she made countless close friendships over the years while working on and attending its programs, and she served as an inspiration and mentor to many young women in the oil and gas and legal fields.

Mary had an exceptional career that began as one of the first lady landmen at Anadarko Petroleum Corp. and Chevron USA, where she set her sights on a law degree. After graduating from law school, she started her legal career with Davis Graham & Stubbs in oil and gas, litigation and public lands, and moved to Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley with the same oil and gas and litigation focus. From 2001 to 2013, Mary served as General Counsel of Encana USA, leading transactions that covered oil and gas basins from Appalachia to the Rockies, and everything in between. Following her time at Encana, Mary served as General Counsel of Vantage Energy, retiring from the practice of law in 2017.

Mary showcased both left and right brain talents, as evidenced by her life-long interest in the performing arts. Before attending law school, Mary danced and taught modern dance at the Perry-Mansfield Arts School and Camp near Steamboat Springs, the oldest continuously operating performing arts camp in the U.S. Most recently, she served as a Council Member for the Jefferson County Cultural Council, and as a Director of the Rocky Mountain Arts Association, the umbrella organization for the Denver Gay Men’s Chorus and the Denver Women’s Chorus.

Mary had a zest for life and was an incredible leader. She will be forever remembered for her big smile, warm heart, fierce intelligence and passionate loyalty to family and friends.

In addition to her son, Erik, and husband, Bill, Mary is survived by her sisters Kathy Holt and Betsy Rust, her brother Michael Viviano, and several nieces and nephews with whom she remained close. A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Rocky Mountain Arts Association. https://denverchoruses.org/support/

Sincerely
Alex Ritchie
Executive Director 

Memorial - Jim King

07/30/2020

On behalf of his family and friends, I am saddened to advise you that Past President and good friend of the Foundation, Jim King, died on July 21, 2020, at home surrounded by his beloved daughter, Laura, son-in-law, Ravi, and his brother, Bob King. It is ironic that Jim passed on the first day of this year’s Annual Institute, given his incredible devotion to and support of the Foundation.

Jim’s long history with the Foundation began while he was still in law school at the University of Colorado, serving as one of the first RMMLF Research Assistants. Jim, a native of Colorado who grew up in Denver, graduated from the University of Colorado in 1970 in Electrical Engineering, with special honors. He graduated from CU law school in 1976, Order of the Coif, and started his career at Sherman & Howard as a member of its natural resources group. He became a partner and subsequently practiced as a partner at Parcel, Mauro, & Spaanstra and Baker & Hostetler. Jim developed a strong practice serving mining and real estate clients, handling transactional, administrative and litigation matters. Jim was a very successful practitioner before the Department of Interior’s Board of Land Appeals and was admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals in the Ninth and Tenth Circuits. He served for many years on the Colorado Bar Associations’ Title Standards Committee, including as co-chair of the Committee, and was a long-time adjunct professor at the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law. He had an exemplary forty-four-year career in mining, public land, and real estate law including agricultural matters.

His service to the Foundation included serving as President (2004-2005), Secretary (2000-2001), the Executive Committee (1998-2000), and Trustee-At-Large (1993-95, and 1998-2000). He served on twelve different committees of the Foundation, including as Chair of the 41^st Annual Institute, Chair of the Site Selection Committee (1992) (and a 27 year tenure on the Committee), Chair of the Relocation Committee (1999-2001), Chair of the Clyde O Martz Teaching Award (2006), and Chair of the Audit & Risk Management Committee (2009-2013).

Jim loved being in the mountains and enjoyed spending time at his mountain cabin in Frisco. He loved Colorado and was an avid Colorado history buff. Jim also loved mining and railroad history and took trips across the United States, including Alaska, to explore historic mining sites.

Jim was known for his intelligence, wit, and dry sense of humor. Up until the very end of his life, he kept those around him laughing and on their toes. Jim kept a cherished and close group of family, friends, and colleagues for whom he would readily do anything.

He was a wonderful lawyer, mentor and friend and will be sorely missed.

There will be a private service on Saturday at 10 a.m. Mountain time that will be streamed via Zoom. The family intends to hold a larger memorial service next year when people can more safely gather. If you want to attend the service on Saturday via Zoom or want to be put on a list to receive information about the larger service when it has been scheduled, please contact Mark Holland by clicking here.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Jim King Scholarship Fund at the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation to fund a new scholarship for a law student attending a Colorado law school who is committed to working in natural resources law in Colorado. Cassie Boggs, another Past President and generous contributor, has already pledged to make an intitial contribution to the fund of $5,000. To contribute, click here. Contributions can also be made in honor of Jim to History Colorado.

Sincerely,

Alex Ritchie

Executive Director

07/30/2020

Congratulations to Veronica I. Larvie (Vonnie) who migrated from her long tenure at the Solicitor’s Office to become administrative law judge in the Departmental Cases Hearings Division, effective April 26, 2020. This appointment makes Vonnie the Department’s first female hearings judge. Vonnie has spoken at a number of Foundation Special Institutes including the Energy Development Institute (2009) and two Public Lands Institutes in 2003 and 2014.

Tulane Law School is in the process of creating two new online Masters of Jurisprudence (NOT an LL.M.) programs in the fields of Environmental Law and Energy Law to add to its programs in Labor & Employment Law and Title IX Certification. These two new programs are targeted primarily (though not exclusively) at non-lawyers; individuals who work in regulated industries, individuals who work in the federal and state regulatory agencies, and individuals working in public advocacy or public interest groups that are interested in these areas. Tulane Law School is attempting now to recruit individuals to create and teach the courses that will be taught in this online program. They intend to offer the following list of courses (number in parentheses is number of course credit hours):

Energy Law, Regulation and Policy Survey (3) (THIS IS THE BASIC INTRO COURSE)
Alternative Energy Sources: Regulation and Development (3) Fossil Fuel: Regulation and Development: Coal, Oil and Gas (3)
Nuclear Energy: Regulation and Development (2)
Electricity Industry: Regulation and Development (2)
Renewable Energy Sources: Regulation and Development (2)
Natural Resources Law (3)
Hazardous Waste Law (3)
Clean Air Law (2)
Clean Water Law (2)
Law & Climate Change (2)
Transitioning from Traditional to Alternative Energy Sources (2)
Toxic Tort Law (3)
Water Law & Policy (2)
Land Use Law (2)
Ocean and Coastal Law (3)
Law, Science and the Environment (2)

If you have any potential interest in creating and teaching any of these courses, please contact the Program Director, Professor Joel Friedman at jfriedman@tulane.edu.

I am saddened to inform you that Rand Case, a friend, mentor, and colleague of many of those involved in the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, passed away surrounded by his family on May 18.

Rand graduated from the Naval Academy in 1965 and served five years as a nuclear submarine officer. He attended the University of Denver Law School and practiced oil and gas law with Poulson, Odell & Peterson, LLC for his entire career. He was incredibly involved in the Foundation, having served as a trustee for 39 years, on 13 program and governance committees, and as the Foundation’s 36th President. He also wrote several papers for the Foundation.

Rand generously donated his time as legal advisor to the Alpine Rescue Team for 30 years. Dedicated to supporting veterans, he also served on the board of Project Sanctuary, which worked to help military families. But his greatest joy was spending time with his family. He loved introducing his grandchildren to the wonders of the outdoors.

Rand is survived by his adoring wife Susan, sons Scott, Brad (Shannon), stepdaughters Rebecca (Wade), Elizabeth (Rickardo), eight grandchildren, his brother Steve, and former wife Nancy Kiernan Case.

A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Project Sanctuary where Rand served as a board member for many years.

Sincerely,

Alex Ritchie

Executive Director

President's Message: June 2020

06/05/2020

Dear Valued Member of the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation,

The year 2020 has been a challenging year for so many and the Foundation is one among the many organizations affected. The novel coronavirus and related economic impacts on travel, discretionary spending, and conferences, along with the substantial drop in the price of oil, have had a tremendous impact on natural resource industries and their service providers. The Foundation has felt these impacts, as large gatherings such as our in-person institutes remain practically infeasible. I previously announced that the leadership of the Foundation made the difficult decision to cancel the in-person 66th Annual Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute. The good news is that we are holding a shortened virtual version of our exceptional annual event. The Virtual Annual Institute on July 23-25, 2020, will include up to eight hours of CLE, and is free to members, only $95 for nonmembers, and $65 for government and nonprofit employees. We hope you will join the hundreds of members and others who have already registered!

The unfortunate news is that the Foundation’s leadership has made the agonizing decision to cancel or postpone the remainder of our 2020 live special institutes and short courses, and the international special institute scheduled for spring 2021. We worked closely with our valued partners in making these decisions. In particular:

• The International Mining Law Short Course, scheduled to be held in Santiago, Chile, on September 21-24 has been postponed indefinitely. We have a hotel contract and hope to hold this course before the end of 2022.

• The Short Courses on International Oil and Gas Law, Contracts and Negotiation – Parts 1 and 2, scheduled to be held in Houston between September 21 and October 2 have been postponed until next year. Along with our partners the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators and the Institute for Energy Law, we will hold these courses in Houston on September 27-October 8, 2021.

• The Special Institute on Public Land Law, Regulation, and Management, that was rescheduled to October 8-9, 2020, in Denver, will again be rescheduled to May 13-14, 2021, in Santa Fe (where the course was originally scheduled to be held in May 2020).

• The Oil and Gas Law Short Course, scheduled to be held in Houston on October 19-23 has been postponed until October 18-22, 2021, in Westminster, Colorado, when we will hold this course along with the Federal Oil and Gas Leasing Short Course. We appreciate the help and support of our partners, the Institute for Energy Law and the Energy and Mineral Law Foundation.

• The Water Law Institute, scheduled to be held in San Diego on November 18-19, 2020, has been postponed and will now be held on November 4-5, 2021, in Santa Fe. We plan to hold this annual event, again, in 2022 in San Diego. We appreciate the support of our co-sponsor, the American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources. To maintain the engagement and involvement of the water law community, we are planning a shortened virtual Water Law Institute to be held on November 19, 2020.

• The Special Institute on International Mining and Oil & Gas Law, Development, and Investment, scheduled to be held in Mexico City on April 21-23, 2021, is postponed until April 2023. In making this decision, we coordinated with our co-sponsor, the International Bar Association Section of Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law, to avoid any conflicts with their biennial program.

We are working hard to respond to the challenges presented by COVID-19. The Foundation’s Board is focused on the future – what can we do now to adapt to the change that is coming because of the pandemic? The Board continues to move forward aggressively to implement new initiatives under our 2018 Strategic Plan to better connect and engage members and support their educational and career-building needs. To keep serving our membership in 2020, the Foundation moved to ramp up on-line CLE offerings including webinars and bundled, subject-area focused video replays of critical content. We started publishing a member’s newsletter, Natural Resources Law Network, including member-authored content on current legal issues.

In addition to the upcoming Virtual Annual Institute (200 signed up the day registration opened), watch for the virtual two-day Special Institute on Distress and Bankruptcy in the Oil & Gas Industry on October 21-23, 2020. The Special Institutes Committee and the Board are hard at work on programming and our current plan is to emerge in 2021 and beyond with a slate of new, timely, and innovative live programs. 

Although the pandemic has had significant impacts on the Foundation and many of its constituents, because of the prudent planning and management of our leaders over the past 66 years, we will emerge strongly from this crisis. Thank you for your continued support of the Foundation and its time-tested model of in-depth scholarly programs and collegiality.

We welcome any thoughts or questions you might have on our COVID-19 response, which you may send to info@rmmlf.org. We are here to continue to serve our members and constituency during these challenging times. 

Sincerely,

Rebecca W. Watson

President

2020-2021 Scholarships Awards Announcement

04/21/2020

The Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation (RMMLF) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2020-2019 Joe Rudd, FHDOS, Richard H. Bate, Catherine J. Boggs, and RMMLF Scholarships, including the David P. Phillips Scholarship.

These tuition scholarships encourage and support well-qualified law students from the Foundation’s Constituent Law Schools who have the potential to make significant contributions to scholarship in the field of natural resources law. To date, 609 scholarships have been awarded, totaling over $3.4 million.

Twenty-two scholars from 10 Constituent Law Schools were awarded scholarships this year:

Joe Rudd Scholarship Awards

FHDO Scholarship Awards

ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF THE OIL & GAS INDUSTRY