§ 52-902. Construction of oil and gas contracts, statutes and governmental orders.

The sanctity of private agreements, and the consistent and predictable application and interpretation of statutes, governmental orders and common law, being essential to the oil and gas industry, the following are declared to be paramount rules of construction to be applied by the courts of this state in the construction of private agreements, statutes and governmental orders relating to the exploration for, operations for, producing of, or marketing oil or gas, or disbursing proceeds of production of oil or gas:

1.  A person is bound as a reasonably prudent operator to operate the well on behalf of all owners in the well and perform any duties owed to any person under a private agreement, statute, governmental order or common law relating to the exploration for, operations for, producing of, or marketing oil or gas, or disbursing proceeds of production of oil or gas, and performance of the duties described herein is that performance which an operator acting reasonably would have undertaken given the circumstances at the time, without being required to subordinate its own business interests, but with due regard to the interests of all affected parties, including the operator; and

2.  There shall not be implied in the duties in paragraph 1 of this section or otherwise any fiduciary duty, quasi-fiduciary duty or other similar special relationship in any private agreement, statute or governmental order or common law relating to the exploration for, operations for, producing of, or marketing oil or gas, or disbursing proceeds of production of oil or gas.

Nothing in this section shall either prohibit the parties to a private agreement from expressly agreeing in writing otherwise or prohibit the Legislature from expressly providing otherwise in any statute subsequently enacted or prohibit any governmental order from expressly providing otherwise to the extent within the power or authority of the issuer of such order.  However, the provisions of paragraph 2 of this section shall not apply to Sections 287.1 through 287.15 of Title 52 of the Oklahoma Statutes and nothing in this act shall be interpreted to relieve an operator or owner from any obligation or duty set forth expressly in the Production Revenue Standards Act or the Natural Gas Market Sharing Act; provided the performance of such obligations or duties shall be subject to the same reasonably prudent operator standard set forth in paragraph 1 of this section.

Added by Laws 2012, c. 201, § 2, emerg. eff. May 8, 2012.