PHM Client Secures $27.75 Million Settlement in Royalty Class Action Against Devon Energy Corporation

A Peifer, Hanson & Mullins client has secured a $27.75 million cash settlement for royalty owners of coalbed methane natural gas produced by Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy Corporation in New Mexico's San Juan Basin. The settlement ends an 11-year class action against the natural gas producer and its affiliate Blackwood & Nichols Company, which plaintiffs alleged underpaid royalties by taking improper deductions for the costs of making coalbed methane gas into a marketable product. The Court-approved settlement represents over 200% percent of the actual damages claimed by the plaintiff on behalf of the class, and was negotiated after years of litigation and multiple appeals. Peifer, Hanson & Mullins represented the plaintiff and the class, along with lawyers from the Eaves Law Firm, PA, Sutin, Thayer & Browne PC, and Mary E. Walta PC. The case is Davis v. Devon Energy Corp. et al., New Mexico First Judicial District Court No. D-0101-CV-2003-01590.