AboutLinn A. Willers Expertise By occupation I'm a professional mineral manager who began my career managing Northern tier minerals (ND, MT and CDN with a sprinkling of OK & TX). I latter managed Rocky Mountain and Mid Continent minerals and currently manage a large set of Gulf Coast minerals along with the afore mentioned.
Experience Over the past 22 years I have always respresented issues from the mineral/royalty owner prospective. Organizations: National Association of Royalty Owners (NARO), American Association of Petroleum Landmen, Denver Association of Petroleum Landmen, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, Energy and Mineral Law Foundation, National Association of Division order Analysts (NADOA), National Association of Lease Title Analysts (NALTA) and the Southwest Kansas Royalty Owners Association. Over the last ten years I have given various mineral management conference presentations, in Albuquerque, Dallas, Fort Worth, Oklahoma City and Tulsa and on a number of occasions I have presented or co-presented the Certified Mineral Management Review Course. I have a Business degree, I'm a Certified Mineral Manager and an RLP with the American Association of Petroleum Landmen. I'm a three term Past President of National Association of Royalty Owners (NARO) and the Immediate Past President.
Expert: Linn A. Willers Date: 7/12/2008 Subject: owning mineral rights
Question I have a two part question:
My grandmother passed away in the 1980's, several years after my grandfather passed. I was told by a half brother that although the many, many acres of property in McLean County, ND was sold to my uncle and his family that the mineral rights were left to all of the grandchildren, not any of the great or great-great grandchildren but all of my siblings and 1st cousins. This is supposedly in her will. For many years before her death she resided in Parshall, ND (Mountrail County). Where and how could I get a copy of the will, maybe the court house in Mountrail County? He was given this information by mu uncles wife after he had passed away.
Secondly, before my father passed away in 1996 he sold his property to my uncle but maintained the mineral rights. Upon his death, his children were given the mineral rights according to a document that was recently sent to me by my brother with an attorney's signature on it as well as the executor which was my mother. My mother doesn't remember doing it but it is definitely her signature and at the time none of my sisters received any documentation. We didn't even know anything about my father maintaining mineral rights. Now one of my brothers has asked myself as well as my siblings to complete someone paperwork and have it filed at the McLean County court house as someone is interested in it and asked my brother to make sure we had all completed the paperwork. However, looking at some of the answers to previous questions it looks like some items need to be recorded every 20 years as ND requires a statement of ownership to be recorded in every county of ownership every twenty years. If this wasn't done and no deeds or leases were recorded since 7/1985 the surface owner could take legal action to reclaim the mineral ownership. My father died in 1999, and we did this recording in 2008, so are we good for another 20 years? Or is there still something that needs to be done. My siblings and I have not lived in North Dakota for over 30 years, so if I can check my grandmother's will or if any recording needs to be done on the mineral rights for my father's property, can it be done on line or by a brother-in-law or sister-in-law?
Answer 1) You should check both Mountrail and McLean for the estate inventory, a copy of the will and death certificates. 2) You need to ask the family more questions pretaining to the McLean paper work. Nothing should be signed without an understanding of what is being executed. Recording the claim form starts the 20 year clock. Very few of the North Dakota court houses have online records therefore phone calls to the county recorders will be required.
