When did the statutory pugh clause take effect?

Answer 1

I think he is referring to the Statutory Pugh Clause in Oklahoma which went into effect for leases executed after May 25, 1977. Basically this is a horizontal pugh clause that does not allow leases to hold more than the producing unit (in cases where units are >160 ac) for more than 90 days after expiration of primary term. So to answer the question directly, yes you need to ensure that the lands you are running title to were not subject to an O&G Lease dated prior to 05/25/77 that covered lands outside of your tract. If those lands were included in a lease with other lands you will need to ensure that those other lands are no longer producing. The easiest way to do this is to make a note of any leases with multiple tracts as you are running the title. Then at the end you can check for possible continuous production on those tracts.