Clark v. Wright’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

17 state decisions

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 27 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In effect, the conclusion reached above is that the facts disclose such a relinquishment of the rights of property by the lessees to their lessors, under a lease wherein the rental depends on the volume of production, as is tantamount in law to be an offer of surrender of the leasehold rights which, to be effective, must be accepted by the lessors. Under a lease of this character [lessees’] acts show an intention to surrender. This intention was effectuated by withdraw of the premises. The failure of [lessees’] market is not a sufficient explanation of their withdraw, for it appears that there was a market for the gas had they been willing to expend a reasonable sum to procure it. It was in April, 1932, more than four years after the withdraw and after [lessors], who were willing to spend such sum, were successfully operating a compressor plant they had connected with the premises, that [lessees] took any action or made any effort to enforce the 1911 lease. If their contention is correct, in a lease on a production or royalty basis, no limit of time could be placed on their failure to comply with the terms of the lease. The land would be continuously subjected to a lease which brought no return to the lessors and the lessors would be without remedy to compel any. The lease would rest as a perpetual cloud on the title, gravely affecting the market value of the surface land.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 332 F. Supp. 2d 759 - Jacobs v. CNG Transmission Corp.

2. ““Where a lessor’s compensation is subject to the volume of production, the period of active production of oil or gas is the measure of the duration of the lease. Where lessor’s compensation is a definite and fixed amount unrelated to the volume of production, the duration of the lease is not measured by the length of time the mineral is actually extracted and marketed; but by the time during which the lease provides that the lessor shall receive the fixed rental. Under these latter circumstances, it can make no difference to lessor whether 100 or 1,000,000 cubic feet of gas is produced.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 6 Pa. D. & C.2d 25 - Moritz v. Fisher