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Nevin, et al. v. Kennedy, et al.

Docket No. 20220136
Oral Argument: Tuesday, October 25, 2022 2:45 PM

Docket Info

Title
Stanley R. Nevin, Plaintiff
and
Northern Oil and Gas, Inc., Plaintiff, Intervenor and Appellant
v.
Helen L. H. Kennedy; Gena Baker f/k/a Gena
Kennedy; Nona Kennedy; Jason Craig Newburn,
as personal representative of Maura Kay Newburn,
deceased: Keira Kennedy Adams; Jess Anne Knutson;
Charles Herbert Jacobson; Miles G. Johnsrud
and Marlene Kay Johnsrud, as Co-Trustees of
the Miles and Marlene Johnsrud Family Mineral
Trust under Agreement dated July 13, 2011;
JoAnn Kennedy; Scott Cameron, as Trustee of the
Scott Cameron Trust dated June 13, 2013;
Shannon Kristine Dusek and David Alan Dusek,
as Trustees of the Shannon and David Dusek
Family Revocable Trust; Tiffany Papagno,
as Personal Representative of the Estate of
Thomas W. Kennedy, deceased; Robert W. Kennedy;
Michael Kennedy; Lisa Marie Kennedy; Lisa Marie Kennedy;
James M. Kennedy; Jodie Thompson Woroniecki, as
Personal Representative of the Estate of
Barbra Kennedy Johnson a/k/a Barbara Kennedy Johnson,
deceased; Michelle Grass; Colleen Zychowicz
f/k/a Colleen Kennedy; Debra Kennedy Griffie;
Benjamin J. Larson; Rainbow Energy
Marketing Corporation; Northern Energy
Corporation; Landmark Oil and Gas, LLC,
Missouri River Royalty Corporation; Spartan
Minerals & Royalty LLC; Sven Resources,
LLC; Continental Resources, Inc.; Burlington
Resources Oil & Gas Company LP; Defendants and Appellees
and
XTO Holdings, LLC; PetroShale , Inc.;
Bole Resources LLC; Brooks Energy Inc.;
CJC Energy Inc.; KT Energy Inc., Mel Energy Inc.;
Noble Royalty Access Fund 12 LP; Noble Access
Royalty Fund 13 LP; North Fork AD3, LLC;
Outdoor Entourage Inc.; G. William Hurley Revocable
Trust; Hurley Oil Properties Inc.; Wind River Resources
Inc.; WHC Exploration LLC; Dakota West, LLC; Marvin
J. Masset; Avalon North, LLC; Peter Masset;
Newport Minerals, Ltd.; Deep Rock Resources, LLC;
Donald James Kennedy, Jr.; Steven Shannon Kennedy;
and all other persons unknown claiming any estate
or interest in or lien or encumbrance upon the property
described in the Complaint, whether as heirs,
devisees, legatees, or personal representative
of any of the above-named persons who may
be deceased or under any other title or interest, Defendants
Case Type
CIVIL APPEAL : OIL, GAS AND MINERALS
Appeal From
Case No. 2018-CV-00097
Northwest Judicial District, McKenzie County
Robin Ann Schmidt
Oral Argument 10/25/2022

Parties' Statement of Issues

  • Appellant

    1. Whether the trial court erred when it ruled that two March 10, 1960 Warranty Deeds (“1960 Deeds”) did not vest Lois Kennedy with 1/2 of Angus Kennedy’s mineral interest in the lands covered therein despite the plain and unambiguous reservation in the 1960 Deeds and the rule stated in Malloy v. Boettcher, 334 N.W.2d 8 (N.D. 1983).
    2. Whether the trial court erred in reforming the 1960 Deeds when no Defendant pled reformation and whether it also erred by admitting and relying upon incompetent and otherwise inadmissible evidence to reform the 1960 Deeds.
    3. Whether the trial court erred in applying res judicata and collateral estoppel based on the probate of Angus Kennedy’s estate.

  • Appellee 1

    1. The district court did not err in concluding that the 1960 Deeds were ambiguous.
    2. The district court’s determination that Angus did not intend to reserve any mineral interest in the Property to Lois was not clearly erroneous.
    3. The district court did not err in determining that res judicata and collateral estoppel prevented the Plaintiffs from bringing their claims to quiet title in this action.
    4. The district court’s determination that the 1960 Deeds did not reserve any interest to Lois was not clearly erroneous.

Summary

Northern Oil and Gas, Inc., appeals from a district court quiet title judgment deciding Northern Oil did not own mineral interests in certain property.

Angus Kennedy owned real property, including minerals, in McKenzie County. In 1960, Kennedy and his wife, Lois, executed two deeds conveying the surface and reserving the minerals. Angus Kennedy died in 1965, and Lois Kennedy died in 1980. In 2018, Stanley Nevin, the successor in interest to Lois Kennedy, and Northern Oil sued the successors in interest to Angus Kennedy, alleging Lois Kennedy owned one-half of the minerals reserved in the 1960 deeds. In response, the Angus Kennedy heirs claimed Angus Kennedy did not intend to reserve any minerals to Lois Kennedy because she did not own an interest in the property conveyed in the 1960 deeds. After a 2021 bench trial, the district court ruled Angus Kennedy did not intend to reserve minerals to Lois Kennedy on the basis of events that occurred after the execution of the 1960 deeds. The court ruled Nevin and Northern Oil do not own mineral interests in the property.

On appeal, Northern Oil argues the district court erred in deciding Angus Kennedy did not intend to reserve minerals to Lois Kennedy.

Briefs

Filing Date Description
08/22/2022 APPELLANT BRIEF View
10/05/2022 APPELLEE BRIEF View
10/20/2022 REPLY BRIEF View

Counsel

Party Type Name
APPELLEE PRIVATE PRACTICE James Espy Dallner - 07003
APPELLANT PRIVATE PRACTICE Nick Andrew Swartzendruber - 06983
APPELLEE PRIVATE PRACTICE Not Licensed in ND - 00002
APPELLEE PRIVATE PRACTICE Lawrence Bender - 03908
APPELLEE PRIVATE PRACTICE Jonathon David Bergman - 07745
APPELLEE PRIVATE PRACTICE Trevor A. Hunter - 07959
APPELLEE PRIVATE PRACTICE Spencer Douglas Ptacek - 08295

(Note: Attachments may not be available for recently filed cases and/or confidential documents.)

Seq. # Filing Date Description Attachment
1 05/12/2022 NOTICE OF APPEAL : 05/12/2022
2 05/12/2022 ORDER FOR TRANSCRIPT
3 05/12/2022 ANNOUNCED DISQUALIFICATION : VandeWalle, Gerald W.
4 05/19/2022 NOT. OF FILING NOT. OF APPEAL AND PROOF OF SERV.
5 05/19/2022 Notice Served on Nick A. Swartzendruber, Harry M. Pippin, Trevor A. Hunter, Lawrence Bender &
6 05/19/2022 James E. Dallner, Jonathon D. Berman, Michael J. Mazzone, Ryan Geltel, Paul G. Yale,
7 05/19/2022 G. William Hurley Revocable Trust;, Hurley Oil Properties Inc., Wind River Resources Inc.
8 05/19/2022 WHC Exploration LLC/Dakota West, LLC, Marvin J. Masset, Avalon North, LLC
9 05/19/2022 Peter Masset, Newport Minerals, Ltd., Deep Rock Resources, LLC, Donald James Kennedy Jr.,
10 05/19/2022 Steven Shannon Kennedy
11 05/19/2022 AMENDED ORDER FOR TRANSCRIPT : 05/20/2022
12 05/24/2022 Affidavit of Jennifer S. Allen in support of Admission to Practice Pro Hac Vice
13 06/13/2022 ELEC. RECORD ON APPEAL DATED JUNE 12, 2022 (ENTRY NOS. 1-918)
14 07/11/2022 All Transcripts Filed in Record
15 08/22/2022 APPELLANT BRIEF View
16 08/22/2022 Oral Argument Request by Appellant
17 08/23/2022 Rec'd Service for ATB
18 08/24/2022 Rec'd 3 copies of ATB back from CD
19 09/12/2022 Returned Mail from Wind River as Undeliverable and Unclaimed (new PO Box found - resent)
20 09/12/2022 Returned Mail from Wind River as Undeliverable and Unclaimed (new PO Box found - resent)
21 09/15/2022 MOT. EXT/TIME APPELLEE BRIEF FILED BY Helen L. H. Kennedy; Gena Balcer f/k/a Gena
22 09/15/2022 Kennedy; Nona Kennedy; Jason Craig Newburn, as personal representative of Maura Kay Newburn,
23 09/15/2022 deceased: Keira Kennedy Adams; Jess Anne Knutson; Charles Herbert Jacobson; Miles G. Johnsrud
24 09/15/2022 and Marlene Kay Johnsrud, as Co-Trustees of the Miles and Marlene Johnsrud Family Mineral
25 09/15/2022 Trust under Agreement dated July 13, 2011; JoAnn Kennedy; Scott Cameron, as Trustee of the
26 09/15/2022 Scott Cameron Trust dated June 13, 2013, Shannon Kristine Dusek and David Alan Dusek,
27 09/15/2022 as Trustees of the Shannon and David Dusek, Family Revocable Trust; Tiffany Papagno,
28 09/15/2022 as Personal Representative of the Estate of Thomas W. Kennedy, deceased; Robert W. Kennedy;
29 09/15/2022 James M. Kennedy; Jodie Thompson Woroniecki, as Personal Representative of the Estate of
30 09/15/2022 Barbra Kennedy Johnson a/k/a Barbara Kennedy Johnson, deceased; Michelle Grass; Colleen Zychowic
31 09/15/2022 f/k/a Colleen Kennedy; Debra Kennedy Griffie;
32 09/15/2022 Continental Resources, Inc.; Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP
33 09/16/2022 ACTION BY CLERK - Granted : 10/05/2022
34 09/19/2022 MOT. EXT/TIME APPELLEE BRIEF by Benjamin J. Larson, Rainbow Energy Marketing Corporation, View
35 09/19/2022 Northern Energy Corporation, Spartan Minerals & Royalty LLC, & Sven Resources, LLC
36 09/19/2022 Landmark Oil and Gas, LLC, and Missouri River Royalty Corporation
37 09/19/2022 ACTION BY CHIEF DEPUTY CLERK - Granted : 10/05/2022
38 09/23/2022 NOTICE OF ORAL ARGUMENT SENT
39 09/26/2022 SITTING WITH THE COURT : Hagerty, Gail H.
40 09/30/2022 Returned Mail from Wind River as Undeliverable and Unclaimed
41 09/30/2022 Returned Mail from Wind River as Undeliverable and Unclaimed
42 10/05/2022 APPELLEE BRIEF View
43 10/05/2022 Oral Argument Request by Appellee
44 10/05/2022 Joinder of Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP with Appellee's brief View
45 10/05/2022 Joinder of Continental Resources, Inc. with Appellee's brief View
46 10/05/2022 Joinder of Benjamin J. Larson, Rainbow Energy Marketing Corporation, Northern Energy Corporation, View
47 10/05/2022 Landmark Oil and Gas, LLC, Missouri River Royalty Corporation, Spartan Minerals & Royalty LLC,
48 10/05/2022 and Sven Resources, LLC with Appellee's brief
49 10/06/2022 Rec'd corrections to AEB
50 10/06/2022 Rec'd Joinder of Continental back from CD
51 10/06/2022 Rec'd Joinder of Burlington back from CD
52 10/06/2022 Rec'd Joinder of Benjamin J. Larson, Rainbow Energy Marketing Corporation,
53 10/06/2022 Northern Energy Corporation, Landmark Oil and Gas, LLC, Missouri River Royalty Corporation,
54 10/06/2022 Spartan Minerals & Royalty LLC and Sven Resources, LLC back from CD
55 10/11/2022 Rec'd 3 copies of AEB back from CD
56 10/19/2022 Rec'd non-compliant RYB (length); given until 10/21/22 by 10 a.m. to revise
57 10/20/2022 REPLY BRIEF View
58 10/21/2022 Rec'd 3 copies of RYB from CSD
59 10/25/2022 APPEARANCES: Nick A. Swartzendruber/Trevor A. Hunter/James E. Dallner
60 10/25/2022 Jonathon D. Bergman & Jennifer S. Allen
61 10/25/2022 ARGUED: Nick A. Swartzendruber/Trevor A. Hunter
62 10/25/2022 ORAL ARGUMENT WEBCAST