Oil & Gas Matters

Baxsto, LLC v. Roxo Energy Company et al. (Tex.); Buffy, LLC v. Roxo Energy Company et al. (Borden Co., TX)
Represented Roxo Energy, a Fort Worth-based oil and gas acquisition and development company, in a series of lawsuits filed in Howard and Borden Counties, Texas, collectively seeking more than $45 million in damages related to leasing and mineral purchase transactions. Prevailed in the Borden County lawsuit with a unanimous “take nothing” jury verdict following a March 2022 trial that was covered in Texas Lawyer. Subsequently prevailed in the Howard County litigation on a summary judgment, which was later upheld by the Texas Supreme Court. The outcome of that case was featured in Law360.

Viper Energy Partners LLC v RSP Permian, LLC (Loving Co., Tex.)
Represented Viper (a subsidiary of Diamondback Energy) against RSP Permian (a subsidiary of ConocoPhillips) in two title disputes regarding valuable Delaware Basin lease rights. Viper prevailed on partial summary judgment on the key issue in the case.

Point Energy Partners, LLC v. MRC Permian Company (Tex.)
Represented Point Energy in a dispute over rightful ownership of 4,000 gross acres in the Permian Basin. The case hinged on whether MRC’s failure to timely drill was excused by the force majeure clause in the relevant lease. Now regarded as a seminal precedent for such disputes, Point prevailed before the Texas Supreme Court in a 2023 decision that was noted in The Texas Lawbook.

Urban Oil and Gas Partners v. Blackbeard Resource, LLC et al. (Tarrant Co., Tex.)
Represented the primary target of the plaintiffs in a multi-party indemnity dispute regarding the ultimate financial responsibility for claims related to Louisiana oil and gas properties. Blackbeard prevailed on summary judgement and was awarded attorney’s fees.

Nortex Minerals, L.P. v. Blackbeard Operating, LLC (Tex. App. Fort Worth) Obtained a summary judgment in Tarrant County, Texas for the defendant, a private equity-backed oil company, which had been sued for an alleged breach of a right of first refusal related to a $180 million transaction. The court granted summary judgment to Blackbeard. That ruling was affirmed by the Court of Appeals, while the litigation and its importance was featured in a JD Supra article.

Double Eagle Andrews v. King Operating, et al. (Tex. App. Eastland)
Secured a summary judgment in an Andrews County title dispute later affirmed by the Eastland Court of Appeals.

WTX Fund v. Ray Holt Brown, et al. (Tex. App. El Paso)
Gained a favorable reversal in a dispute regarding ownership and royalty interests. A Texas appeals court applied the historical 1/8 and estate misconception theory when interpreting a 1951 deed and concluding the client owned all of a disputed interest. This reversed the trial court’s decision that the client did not own any fraction of the disputed interest.

BP America Production Co. v. Red Deer Resources, LLC (Tex.)
Represented at a trial regarding claims for the termination of a multimillion-dollar oil and gas lease, secured a jury finding that the lease in question produced in paying quantities. Later obtained a full take-nothing judgment when the Texas Supreme Court held that the only material question asked of the jury was the one answered in favor of the client.

Admissions 

• Texas  
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit  
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas

Board Certifications

• Oil, gas, and mineral law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Education  

• The University of Texas (J.D., 2008)  
  • With Honors
  • The Review of Litigation, Associate Editor
  • Mediation Competition, Champion
• Abilene Christian University (B.S., 2005)

Memberships 

• State Bar of Texas  
• Tarrant County Bar Association  
• ADAM Energy Fort Worth  
• Fort Worth Botanic Garden Board of Directors
• Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Lease and Title Analysts (DFW-ALTA) 
• Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute, Dallas/Fort Worth Regional Chair (2019-2020) 
• Pro Bono College of Texas (2010–2017)  
• The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, executive committee (2023)

• “Texas’ ‘Bright Star’ To Shine For Law Firms in 2026,” Law 360, January 5, 2026.
• “Allocation Wells,” Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Lease and Title Analysis (DFW-ALTA), November 6, 2025
• “Production in Paying Quantities,” Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Lease and Title Analysts (DFW-ALTA) Fall Seminar, October 16, 2025
• How Texas Boutique With BigLaw Roots Grew In Its 1st Year, Law360, February 27, 2025
• “Lessee Cotenancy,” Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Lease and Title Analysts (DFW-ALTA) Summer Webinar, TX, August 13, 2024.
• “Royalty Valuation,” DALWORTH, Dallas, TX, February 27, 2024.
• “Force Majeure,” Tarrant County Bar Association- Energy Section, February 21, 2024.
• “Client Conflicts Drive BigLaw Vets To Form Texas Boutique,” Law360, February 6, 2024.
• “New Fort Worth Trial Firm Adds Offices in Dallas, West Texas” Texas Lawyer, February 8, 2024.
• “Vartabedian & Hester Announces New Name Partner, New Offices, 2 More Additions,”- The Texas Lawbook, February 5, 2024.
• “What Texas Business Court Could Mean for Oil, Gas Cases”- Law360 Expert Analysis, November 15, 2023.
• “Evolving Royalty Interpretations,” DFW Association of Lease and Title Analysts (DFW-ALTA), Fall Seminar, Dallas, TX, October 3, 2023.
• “Bad Faith Washouts: Texas’ Newest Cause of Action,” Texas Lawyer, August 29, 2023.
• “Litigator of the Week Runners-Up and Shout Outs,” The AmLaw Litigation Daily, April 28, 2023.
• “Texas Supreme Court Decides ‘Force Majeure’ Dispute in Oil and Gas Law,” Texas Lawyer, April 23, 2023.
• “Force Majeure: Excusing Nonperformance in Chaotic Times,” DFW Association of Lease and Title Analysts, Dallas, TX, April 18, 2023.
• “SCOTX Wrestles with Force Majeure Clause in Drilling Delay,” The Texas Lawbook, October 25, 2022.
• “Texas Justices To Hear Permian Basin Drilling Deadline Suit,” Law 360, May 31, 2022.
• From Trash to Treasure: Who Owns Valuable Wastewater in the Oil Patch? Texas Lawyer, May 24, 2022.
• “Consent Rights,” Fort Worth Association of Professional Landmen, January 20, 2022.
• “Consent, Assign; Resent, Resign,” DFW Association of Lease and Title Analysts, August 18, 2021.
• “Continuous Development Clause Litigation,” Dallas Bar Association Energy Section January Meeting, January 20, 2021.
• “Perpetual Motion- Current Issues in Continuous Development Clauses,” DFW Association of Lease and Title Analysts, December Meeting and Spring Seminar, December 9, 2020 and May 24, 2021 (Spring Seminar).
• “The Force Majeure Made Me Do It: Excusing Nonperformance in a Pandemic,” Texas General Counsel Forum December Meeting, December 3, 2020.
• “Hot Topics in Oil and Gas Litigation,” Texas Oil and Gas Association Production Law Committee Meeting, November 2, 2020.
• “Who is in the Right? Terminating Oil and Gas Leases,” Energy, Environmental, and Natural Resource Systems Law Program Speaker Series, October 1, 2020.
• “Postmodern Duhig,” Oil, Gas & Mineral Title Examination, TexasBarCLE, June 18-19, 2020.
• “Postmodern Duhig,” Dallas Bar Association Energy Section, Dallas, TX, November 20, 2019.
• “Squaring the Circle: The Law of Oilfield Units,” NALTA National Conference, Westminster, CO, August 29, 2019.          
• “Caveat Lessor: The Dangers of Royalty Leasing in Texas,” Oil and Gas Investor, July 2019.
• “Don’t Box Me In: Units in the Oil Patch,” Texas Journal of Oil, Gas, and Energy Law Symposium, Austin, TX, February 7, 2019.
• “Existential (Lease) Crisis: When Is a Lease ‘in Existence’?” Texas Lawbook, January 6, 2019.
• “Don’t Let the Suspense Get to You,” Landman Magazine, March/April 2018.
• “Loose Canons: The Effect on Mineral and Royalty Deeds as Texas Courts Favor Expressions of Intent Over Default Canons of Deed Construction,” Texas Oil & Gas Magazine, February 2018.
• “When Kings, Queens, and Minerals Are Not Royalty,” Texas Journal of Oil, Gas, and Energy Law Symposium, Austin, TX, February 2018. 
• “Anadarko Case Could Reshape Offsite Drilling in Texas,” Law360 (cited commentator), March 20, 2017.
• “Lease Disputes,” Texas Association of Defense Counsel Fall Seminar, September 2016.
• “Completely Complete: Determining when a Well Can Be Considered Completed,” Landman Magazine, March/April 2016.
• “How to Ensure Overriding Royalty Interests Won’t Terminate,” Law360, March 18, 2016.
• “Carefully Consider Options when Facing a Lease Termination Dispute,” Permian Basin Oil & Gas Magazine, March 1, 2016.

• Lawdragon 500, Leading Litigators in America, “Oil & Gas Litigation,” 2026.
• Benchmark Litigation, Future Litigation Star, 2026.
• Thompson Reuters, Texas Super Lawyers, “Super Lawyer,” 2025.
• Chambers USA, America’s Leading Business Lawyers, “Band 3 Oil & Gas Litigation (USA),” 2024-2025.
• BL Rankings, The Best Lawyers in America Guide, “Oil & Gas Law,” 2024-2025.
• BL Rankings, Best Lawyers, “Best Lawyers in DFW,” 2024.
• Benchmark Litigation, USA, “40 & Under Hot List – South, Commercial Litigation and Oil and Gas,” 2024.
• Thompson Reuters, Texas Super Lawyers, “Rising Stars,” 2017-2023.
• Thompson Reuters, Texas Super Lawyers, “Up-and-Coming 100,” 2022-2023.
• Fort Worth Magazine, “Top Attorneys,” 2017-2019.