Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Texas

mineral rights

we purchased our home by for sale by owner. The property had mineral rights that were to go with the property. We paid close to asking price in order to have the rights conveyed to us. There is an addemdum to the contract that states that the mineral rights go with the property. There is currently gas drilling going on and the royalties are being paid out. This property is located in the Bartlett shell area.

The title company policy did not list the mineral rights as not coveying nor did the warranty deed. I filed a claim with my title company and they have filed suit against the previous owners. My question is, when we talked to the attorney who is representing us(title company hired this law firm to represent us), he said the owner is now suing the builder he purchased the house from. Will we have to wait for the outcome of his lawsuit before we will know the outcome of outs? Should we have our own personal attorney?(we did contact a lawyer and was told he felt we did not need one), where is the title companies liability in this. Should or can we sue the title company for not finding the error? They say the gas field is one of the largest ever found. They speculate the payouts could go on for 75 years,


Asked on 4/27/05, 10:21 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Stephen Tiemann Stephen W. Tiemann, Attorney and Counselor at Law

Re: mineral rights

From your description, this is a complicated legal matter.

You should retain your own attorney for this matter.

You may have legal claims against the title company or the seller of the home, and your legal claims may be in conflict with the legal position of the title company.

You also need your own attorney to investigate the case between the seller and the builder, and determine how that might impact your legal claims against the title company or the seller.

You should work with an attorney that has experience in real estate litigation.

Best regards.

Steve Tiemann

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Answered on 4/27/05, 12:31 pm
Joseph A. McDermott, III Attorney at Law

Re: mineral rights

Title insurance in Texas does not insure mineral interests. Whether you have a claim against the tirle company is therefore problematic. However, if the deed was drawn by a lawyer who purported to conform the deed to the contract, there may be a claim against him. To evaluate your situation, a lawyer will need to look at the contract, title commitment, title policy, deed, and other closing papers.

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Answered on 4/27/05, 2:07 pm


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