Donald Estep, LLC

Practice Areas

Oil, Gas and Mineral Law

Donald & Estep, LLC provides a full range of title, regulatory, and transactional services, Including:

Mineral Titles
Examination of title and preparation of title opinions for oil and gas drilling, division orders, financing and acquisition of producing and non-producing mineral properties.

Agreements
Negotiation and preparation of agreements traditionally used in the development, acquisition, sale and financing of energy properties including leases, farmouts, assignments, exploration agreements, operating agreements, seismic licenses, surface use agreements, prospect generation agreements, purchase and sale agreements, gas storage leases and related agreements, CO2 production, sales and transportation agreements, mortgages and deeds of trust, and financing statements.

Regulatory
Permitting, pooling, unitization, establishment of and amendments to special field rules and other matters requiring regulatory approval from the various state and federal agencies.

Transportation and Production
Permitting, rights of way and easements, condemnation and expropriation, processing and production handling agreements, gas storage, swaps, hedges and derivative contracts.

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Practice Areas

Real Estate Law

Our representation includes real estate sales and acquisitions, secured transactions, property development, commercial leasing, title insurance, and all other types of real property and related finance law, including:

Sales and Acquisitions
Negotiation, documentation, related financing and closing of commercial properties.

Secured Transactions
Documentation of secured transactions involving real property, including loan agreements and security agreements, and closing such secured transactions.

Property Development
Representation of developers and lenders in the development of commercial and residential real property.

Commercial Leasing
Negotiation and documentation of lease transactions and related documentation from the landlord and tenant’s perspectives.

Title Insurance
Providing a full range of title insurance services, including the issuance of title commitments, policies and closing.

Litigation
Representation of landowners in boundary disputes, land use disputes, quiet title actions, easement disputes and tax assessment suits.

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Attorneys

Michael T. Estep
mestep@donaldestep.com

Mike Estep's practice is devoted primarily to natural resource law in the fields of energy, real estate and forestry. For the past 29 years, he has been active in the oil and gas industry, working as a field landman while attending law school, and later serving as Vice-President, Land for an independent oil company in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Mike did contract mineral title work under the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and in 1985, began private law practice specializing in oil and gas in Jackson, Mississippi.

Mr. Estep has made numerous appearances on behalf of operators before the Oil and Gas Boards in both Mississippi and Alabama, and has extensive experience in all phases of oil and gas exploration and production legal work, rendering hundreds of drilling title and division order opinions. Mike has drafted exploration, participation and acquisition agreements, and represented clients in connection with related leasehold, surface use and property issues. Recently, Mike has devoted a growing portion of his time to transactional matters, including all phases of acquisition and divestiture of energy properties, both onshore and offshore, and related financing issues. He also participated in several complex land acquisitions, involving properties throughout the south-central United States, and he has assisted in drafting and negotiating appropriate surface use agreements related to these properties.

Mr. Estep is a graduate of the University of Alabama School of Law, and is a member of the Mississippi and Alabama State Bar Associations (Section on Natural Resources), Mississippi Association of Petroleum Landmen (“MAPL”), Mississippi Oil and Gas Lawyers, and U.S. Oil & Gas Association. He is a former Associate Director of MAPL.

John W. Donald, Jr.
jdonald@donaldestep.com

John Donald’s practice includes real estate transactions, oil and gas and natural resources law. He has over thirty years of experience in the examination of title and rendering numerous opinions for drilling, revenue distribution and financing purposes covering lands situated in Alabama and its coastal waters. He has regulatory experience in both contested and uncontested proceedings before the Alabama State Oil and Gas Board.

His practice includes commercial real estate sales, financing transactions, and title insurance.

Mr. Donald has delivered presentations to various oil and gas law seminars, and he is past chairman of the Oil, Gas and Mineral Section of the Alabama Bar Association. He is a graduate of Cumberland School of Law and is a member of the American, Alabama and Mobile Bar Associations.

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Representative Clients

Oil & Gas

Bridwell Oil Company	Browning & Welch, Inc.
Century Exploration Company	Chevron U.S.A., Inc.
Cimarex Energy Co.	Cobra Oil & Gas Corporation
Denbury Onshore, LLC	Duncan Oil, Inc.
ELM Corporation	EnSight III Energy Management, LLC;
EOG Resources, Inc.	Escambia Asset Company, LLC
Finley Resources, Inc.	Gibraltar Energy Corporation
Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc.	Marubeni Oil & Gas (USA) Inc.
Mayne and Mertz, Inc.	Mobile Mineral Corporation
Moon & Hines, L.L.C.	Murphy Exploration & Production Company
Paramount Petroleum Co., Inc.	Parawon Corporation
Primal Energy Corporation	Primary Natural Resources, Inc.
Pruet Oil Company, L.L.C.	Rebel Drilling Company, L.P.
Samson Resources Company	Savannah Oil and Gas, L.L.C.
Spooner Petroleum Company	St. Mary Land & Exploration Company
Tellus Operating Group, L.L.C.	Tensas Production Company Inc.
Travelers Exploration Company, L.L.C.	Trinity USA Operating, L.L.C.
Ventex Oil & Gas, Inc.	Yuma Exploration and Production Company

Real Estate

Commonwealth Land Title Insurance Company	James Graham Brown Foundation
Land America	Lawyers Title Insurance Company
Providence Building Corporation	Providence Park, Inc.

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Contact Us

Suite 903, 61 St. Joseph Street - Mobile, AL 36602

Post Office Box 1865 - Mobile, AL 36633

Telephone (251) 378-3030- Facsimile (251) 378-3035

E-mail info@donaldestep.com

Contact an attorney by e-mail using the links below:

jdonald@donaldestep.com mestep@donaldestep.com

No representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers.

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