45.1-161.311:8 - Production of coal by majority interest owner; petition to establish trust for known coal owner...
§ 45.1-161.311:8. Production of coal by majority interest owner; petition toestablish trust for known coal owners.
A. Any person or persons or lessee with at least two-thirds interest in coalon a particular tract of land, who is seeking to extract such coal, maypetition the circuit court in the county or city containing the majority ofthe tract to establish a trust.
B. The petition shall:
1. List all known owners; and
2. Include the proposed terms of a lease to be offered to the minorityowners, which lease shall be typical of other arms-length leases in the area.
C. The petitioner shall establish to the satisfaction of the court that adiligent effort has been made to obtain the minority owners' consent to leasetheir interest in the coal. The petitioner shall demonstrate to the courtthat (i) production of the coal by the petitioner's lessee is of economicbenefit to all parties, (ii) if the coal is not produced, then the economicvalue of the coal is lost and the economic benefit of owning the coal isdecreased, and (iii) there is no practical method for dividing such coalamong the owners without extracting the coal.
D. Immediately upon filing the petition, the petitioner shall send byregistered or certified mail, with a return receipt requested, notice of thepetition to the party subject to the petition.
E. The court may appoint a trustee and authorize the trustee to execute alease pursuant to § 45.1-161.311:5.
F. The court shall escrow or direct the trustee to escrow the proceeds of thelease attributable to the minority interests until such time as the minorityowner's claim is established to the satisfaction of the court.
(2003, c. 775.)