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Overview

Edward Poitevent has practiced energy law for more than 40 years, with a concentration in the U.S. markets, the U.S. Gulf Coast, and international energy deals.  He focuses his practice on all phases of domestic and international energy/mineral law and natural resources law.

Throughout his career he has counseled clients in a wide range of interests in the energy industry, including natural gas pipeline companies and domestic and international oil and gas projects.

Edward recently won a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court case concerning the non-existence of critical habitat on family land in Louisiana for an extinct frog. This ruling prompted the U.S. Department of the Interior to overhaul its critical habitat rules.

Representative Matters

  • Represented client in successfully obtaining underwriters to significantly increase bonding for claim allision damages to Outer Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico, federal lease platform for more than $250 million. 

  • Represented clients in connection with materialmans’ liens and payment disputes on Outer Continental Shelf federal leases, Gulf of Mexico.

  • Represented clients in connection with state law implications involving federal bankruptcy issues arising on Outer Continental Shelf federal leases, Gulf of Mexico.

  • Represented client in connection with drafting documents for onshore Louisiana drilling venture.

  • Represents clients in numerous administrative appeals at Interior Board of Land Appeals on decommissioning of Outer Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico, federal lease facilities.

  • Represents clients in numerous administrative appeals at Interior Board of Land Appeals concerning alleged violations of DOI Board of Safety and Environment Enforcement on Outer Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico, federal leases.

  • Represents client in $25 million+ royalty dispute for oil and gas produced and sold from Outer Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico, federal leases and negotiated settlement agreement.

  • Advises clients on matters concerning purchase and sale of Louisiana leases in state waters and Outer Continental Shelf federal leases, Gulf of Mexico.

  • Advises clients on matters involving dispute with operator of onshore federal lease.

  • Advises clients on matters involving numerous royalty disputes with various producers in Haynesville Shale area, north Louisiana.

  • Advises clients on matters involving drafting and negotiation of numerous oil and gas leases in Haynesville Shale area, north Louisiana.

  • Advises clients on matters in connection with purchase of Louisiana salt domes, and analysis of title to same.

  • Advises clients on matters in connection with gas purchase, gas gathering, throughput and deficiency and related agreements for gas produced from Outer Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico, federal leases.

  • Lead outside counsel for negotiation and drafting of a Share Purchase Agreement, a Coal Supply Agreement, and related documents for an approximately $1 billion (USD) project in Turkey.
  • Lead outside counsel for negotiation and drafting of a Joint Venture Agreement and related agreements and documents for a gold mine project in Turkey.
  • Implement and interpret contracts for operation of a major LNG liquefaction facility (the largest in the Western hemisphere) in Trinidad and the sale of LNG from the facility.
  • Assist the law department of a Trinidad liquefaction facility in numerous legal tasks, including arbitration issues, during a 6 month secondment to a company in Trinidad.
  • Implement and interpret contracts for the sale of gas in a Trinidad for LNG facility.
  • Draft Gas Vaporization and related agreements for a proposed floating terminal in the Gulf of Mexico for a supermajor.  Analyze reserve issues for gas reserves offshore Angola.
  • Drafting contracts involving the development of Indonesian natural gas reserves and gas purchase and transportation contracts for the gas.
  • Draft and negotiate farmout for development of gas reserves offshore Nigeria.
  • Draft and negotiate a series of contracts for development of gas reserves in Indonesia and development of pipeline infrastructure associated with the same to sell gas to major consumer of gas.
  • Long-term crude oil import agreement for 1,000,000 barrels/mo. from a Latin American state-owned oil and gas company.
  • Negotiate and draft an operating contract for platforms in the Gulf of Thailand.
  • Negotiate, draft, and structure agreements for a joint venture to conduct seismic operations in Mexico.
  • Negotiate, draft, and structure agreements for a joint venture to conduct seismic operations in Brazil.
  • Negotiate, draft, and structure complicated agreements for conduct of seismic operations offshore Canada with a supermajor.
  • Lead counsel for a $282 million merger of an entity with leases in Louisiana state waters and OCS (offshore Louisiana and Texas) and the production for a major Australian energy company.
  • Lead counsel for $83 million purchase of producing oil and gas properties in Gulf of Mexico (offshore Louisiana and Texas).
  • Farmout, participation, and development agreements for onshore Gulf Coast and offshore oil and gas fields (Louisiana and Texas).
  • Natural gas volumetric production payment and prepayment transactions.
  • Farmout and development of Gulf of Mexico fields for deep gas reserves.
  • Acquisition and development of West Texas fields for oil and gas development.
  • Participation agreement for a West Texas field.
  • Acquisition and structuring of a major package of land-related assets in Louisiana (fee, mineral royalty, and working interest).
  • Negotiate, structure, and finalize agreement with exploration company for development of Tribal lands in Utah.
  • Mineral law issues for largest Louisiana landowner and major owner of timber and minerals in Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Alabama.
  • Financing of interests in producing fields in Louisiana and Texas.
  • Oil and gas development of 35,000 acres of South Louisiana marshlands, including 3-D seismic option.
  • Development issues involving North Louisiana minerals.
  • Litigation involving surface and subsurface environmental issues in a producing Louisiana field.
  • Ownership dispute over a large mineral acreage in a Louisiana field.
  • Preparation and negotiation of a Texas farmout agreement.
  • Gas sales contracts, processing agreements, and a related product sales agreements in a West Texas field.
  • Negotiation of a major package of Rockies gas for simultaneous prepaid gas contract sale to utility.
  • Vermilion Field production payment maintenance and gas imbalances.
  • Analysis and resolution of gas imbalance issues (onshore and offshore Louisiana fields).
  • Throughput capacity lease for 300-mile crude oil pipeline in Mid-America.
  • Storage of natural gas in a Gulf Coast salt dome (Napoleonville).
  • Contracts for development and operation of a salt dome cavern storage in a Southwest Louisiana salt dome.
  • Development of coalbed methane and lignite reserves in North Louisiana.
  • Outer Continental Shelf operations and regulatory matters.
  • Major natural gas infrastructure contracts for deepwater Gulf of Mexico operations.
  • Contract for Gulf of Mexico FPSO operations.
  • Development and construction of platforms and pipelines for deepwater Gulf of Mexico operations.
  • Drilling contracts for Gulf of Mexico wells.
  • Negotiation and drafting of seismic agreement for a Norwegian company for seismic operations in Gulf of Mexico for a major integrated oil company.
  • Acquisition of Louisiana petroleum pipelines.
  • Louisiana intrastate pipeline acquisitions and operations.
  • Negotiation of energy supply/management services for a large U.S. Southwest utility on behalf of major integrated oil company.
  • Terminal use agreement for LNG vaporization facility in the Gulf of Mexico.
  • Negotiate, draft, and structure land-related documents for onshore Texas and Louisiana LNG vaporization facilities.
  • Contracts for operation of Louisiana and Texas intrastate pipeline companies.
  • Advise interstate natural gas pipeline on land-related issues for acquisition of rights-of-way and related agreements for a 140-mile natural gas pipeline in Southwest Louisiana.
  • Contracts to build/operate Louisiana 200 MW independent power project.
  • Purchase and sale of interstate natural gas pipeline.
  • Federal Energy Regulatory Commission certificates for Texas and Louisiana pipeline systems.

Professional & Civic Activities

Professional and Civic Activities

  • American Association of Petroleum Landmen member and former Co-Chair of its Model Form Gas Balancing Agreement Committee. 
  • Association of International Petroleum Negotiators' Model Form Farmout Agreement Committee member and Model Form International Unitization and Unit Operating Agreement Committee member. 
  • American Bar Association’s Section of Environmental, Energy, and Natural Resources Law former Council Member.
  • Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation former Trustee.
  • Eastern Mineral Law Foundation former Trustee.
  • Louisiana Mineral Institute governing body former member.
  • Leukemia Society of America, Inc., Louisiana Chapter President, 1990-1991. 
  • Junior Achievement of Greater New Orleans Board of Directors, 1984-1990. 
  • Louisiana State Bar Association member.

Honors & Awards

Honors & Awards

  • Best Lawyers in America 2007 - 2024.
  • Louisiana Super Lawyers 2013 - 2015.
  • New Orleans Magazine "Top Lawyer" 2016 - 2023.
  • Edward has been listed in the Euromoney/Legal Media Group's Guide to the World’s Leading Energy and Natural Resources Lawyers and Guide to the World’s Leading Project Finance Lawyers. 
  • Who's Who in American Law. 
  • New Orleans CityBusiness 2010 Leadership in Law honoree.

News & Events

Publications

  • Author, "Post-Production Deductions From Royalty," Petroleum Accounting and Financial Management Journal, Vols. 22 and 23, Fall/Winter/Spring 2003 and 2004.
  • Co-Author & Co-Chair, "State Regulation of Intrastate Oil and Gas Pipelines in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana," Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Special Institute on Oil and Natural Gas Pipelines: Wellhead to End User, January 1995.
  • Author, "Post-Production Deductions From Royalty," South Texas Law Review, Vol. 44. No. 3, Summer 2003.
  • Co-Author, "The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and the Concept of Adjacent State Law" and " Moving Offshore Production to Market," Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation’s OCS Short Course, Spring 2003.
  • Author, "Wellhead Gas Balancing," Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Special Institute on Natural Gas, 2001.
  • Co-Author, "Preferential Rights, Rights of First Refusal and Options: The Whys and Wherefores," American Association of Petroleum Landmen, June 2000.
  • Co-Editor, Chapter 25, "Outer Continental Shelf Leases and Operating Regulations," The Law of Federal Oil and Gas Leases (Matthew Bender).
  • Co-Author, "Recent Developments on the Outer Continental Shelf," 47th Annual Institute on Oil and Gas Law and Taxation, Southeast Legal Foundation, 1996.
  • Author, "The Louisiana Mineral Code and the Civil Law Tradition," Oil and Gas Law & Taxation Review, Vol. 12, Issue 5, 1994.

Industries

Bar Admissions

  • Louisiana

Education

Tulane University Law School, J.D., 1974

Tulane University, B.A., 1971

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