Pa Court Affirms Order Requiring County to Record 'Blanket' Lease Assignments

HARRISBURG, Pa. - A Pennsylvania county recorder of deeds is required by law to record multiple, or "blanket" lease assignments as they are presented by a shale gas drilling company, a state appellate court has affirmed. Chesapeake Appalachia LLC v. Golden, No. 883 C.D. 2011 (Pa. Cmwlth. Ct.).

Pennsylvania's Commonwealth Court said Jan. 27 that a trial court correctly interpreted state law in ordering Wayne County Recorder Ginger Golden to rescind a policy of not recording assignments that encompass multiple individual oil and gas leases.

At issue were four multiple lease assignments, accounting for 211 individual leases, that Chesapeake Appalachia …