On September 9, 2014, Ohio’s Seventh District Court of Appeals issued a decision concerning the 1989 version of the Ohio Dormant Mineral Act (1989 DMA) and the 2006 amendment to the Dormant Mineral Act (2006 DMA). In Dahlgren v. Brown Farm Properties, LLC, the Court of Appeals, reversing the trial court, reaffirmed its earlier holdings in Walker v. Shondrick-Nau and Swartz v. Householder and held that the 1989 DMA is self-executing. The Court found that the 2006 DMA may only be applied prospectively and that the abandonment of a severed mineral interest under the 1989 DMA is not disturbed by the enactment of the 2006 DMA.
To read the decision, click here.