It doesn't happen often, but when it does, it's alarming: two different operators both claim they have the right to your minerals. Maybe you received division orders from both. Maybe one is paying you while another says you owe them a signed lease. Maybe two different companies are drilling on adjacent units and both think your acreage is in their unit.

Why It Happens

Overlapping units. When two operators form drilling units that overlap at the edges, there can be confusion about which unit includes your minerals. This is a spacing and regulatory issue that the state oil and gas commission is supposed to prevent, but mistakes happen.

Title disputes. If there's ambiguity in the chain of title (unclear deed language, unrecorded conveyances, competing claims from different heirs), two operators may each have a title opinion that reaches a different conclusion about who owns the minerals.

Lease assignment confusion. An operator may have assigned a lease to another company, but the assignment wasn't recorded or was recorded with errors. The original operator may still think they have the lease, while the new operator also claims it.

Depth severance. In some cases, different operators hold leases to different depths on the same tract. One operator may have a shallow lease, while another has a deep lease. This is legitimate, but if it's not clearly documented, it can look like a conflict.

What to Do

Don't sign anything until the conflict is resolved. If two companies send you division orders with different decimal interests or for different units, signing one may prejudice your position with the other. Hold off until you understand the situation.

Contact both operators. Call each company's land or division order department. Explain that you've received competing claims. Ask each one to explain the basis for their claim, including the unit boundaries, the lease they're relying on, and the title opinion.

Check the state oil and gas commission. Look up the wells and spacing orders for both units. The commission's records will show the official unit boundaries and which tracts are included in each. If there's an overlap, the commission's records are the authoritative source.

Review your lease. If one operator claims you're leased to them and another claims you're unleased and being pooled, pull out your lease and check who the lessee is. If the lease was assigned, look for a recorded assignment. The county records should show the current leaseholder.

Consult a mineral rights attorney. If you can't resolve the conflict by talking to the operators and checking public records, an attorney can review the title, identify the source of the dispute, and advise you on your rights. Legal tools include quiet title actions, trespass claims, and injunctive relief.

Protecting Your Income

While the dispute is pending, one or both operators may hold your payments in suspense. This is frustrating but expected. Operators won't pay when there's a title question because they could be paying the wrong party (or the wrong operator).

Keep records of every communication. Note dates, names, and what was said. If the dispute takes time to resolve, your accumulated payments should be released (with interest, in some states) once the title is cleared.

Prevention

The best prevention is clean title and clear records. Keep your deeds recorded, respond to division orders promptly, and maintain an organized record of which operators are on which properties. When changes happen (new leases, assignments, pooling orders), update your records and confirm with the operator that they have the same information.

Most conflicts arise from gaps in the paperwork. If your side of the paperwork is clean and current, resolving the dispute is much easier.

MinRight helps here by keeping your operator assignments, division orders, and lease records linked to each property. When you can show exactly which operator holds which lease on which property, disputes get resolved faster.