Will brings extensive carbon capture and sequestration experience to his already robust energy sector and property law practice. Will has given numerous presentations on oil and gas, property-related matters and carbon capture. He is an industry pioneer in negotiating unique carbon capture deals covering hundreds of thousands of acres in Louisiana and Texas. An accepted expert in “Title and Mineral Law” who has provided testimony before Louisiana’s First Judicial District, Will was also the Editor of the award-winning landman publication, The Register, for the Ark-La-Tex Association of Professional Landmen.
Over the last several years, Will has been heavily involved in drafting and negotiating carbon sequestration servitude and lease agreements. These transactions involve more than 200,000 acres in Louisiana and Texas, together with other legal and regulatory facets of CCUS, including appearing before the Louisiana Office of Mineral Resources regarding state-owned lands. Notably, Will is an active member of the LMOGA Carbon Committee.
In addition to his focus on carbon capture and sequestration, Will represents and assists energy and midstream companies with their exploration, production, and operational matters. This includes advising on oil and gas title, due diligence and curative, purchase and sale agreements, gas gathering agreements, master service agreements, exploration and farm-out agreements, joint operating agreements, mineral leases, saltwater disposal, regulatory compliance, and surface use-related agreements involving well pads, roads, pipelines, powerlines, and frac ponds.
As an advocate and litigator, Will guides energy companies and owners of mineral and property rights through demands, disputes, and litigation involving energy-related contracts, mineral rights, property rights, and legal compliance. He is fluent in the laws and regulations of this specialized discipline of the law and advises on La. R.S. 30:10, La. R.S. 31:137, La. R.S. 30:103.1, as well as issues associated with concursus/interpleader, surface use, royalty payments, unleased mineral owners, unitization, continuous operations, shut-in payments, production in paying quantities, and the public records doctrine.
Moreover, Will is called upon by various businesses, large landowners, timber companies, and banks to advise on acquisition and property management matters, including acquisitions and divestitures of both land and minerals/royalty, title matters, curative, oil and gas matters, mineral and royalty servitudes, road and access issues, surface use, farming and hunting leases, and trespass and boundary issues.
Will is valued by clients, colleagues, and matter constituents alike for providing solutions and explanations that everyone can understand. He is appreciated for finding common ground without compromising what his client needs to succeed, as well as for being a dealmaker who keeps client matters on track and progressing toward the right result.
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LSU Law Center, J.D., 2001
- Member, Louisiana Law Review
- Recipient, “Association Henri Capitant, Louisiana Chapter” Award
- Millsaps College, B.B.A., cum laude, 1997
Bar Admissions
- Louisiana
- Texas
Courts
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
- “Best Newsletter Medium Association,” American Association of Professional Landmen, Editor, The Register, 2022
- “Rising Star,” Louisiana Super Lawyers, 2010-2013