HBA-DMH H.B. 735 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 735 By: King, Tracy Civil Practices 3/19/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In the 1999 case of De Los Santos v. Coastal Oil & Gas Corp., the oil company filed a declaratory judgment lawsuit in the Dallas Court of Appeals. The court ruled that the declaratory judgment lawsuit did not need to follow the mandatory venue provisions in the Natural Resource Code. The court allowed the lawsuit to be tried in Dallas, the location of the oil company, instead of in Zapata County where the minerals and wells were located. Not requiring landowners to file an action in the county where wells are located may offer an advantage to businesses and be a financial burden on landowners. House Bill 735 requires an action arising under an oil and gas lease to be brought in a county in which all or a part of the real property subject to the lease is located. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 735 amends the Civil Practice and Remedies Code to require an action arising under an oil and gas lease to be brought in a county in which all or a part of the real property subject to the lease is located. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.