W.Va. Federal Judge Upholds Validity of Arbitration Clause in Mineral Lease

WHEELING, W.Va. — A federal judge has ordered a West Virginia landowner to arbitrate a lease dispute with drilling firms, rejecting arguments that the court lacks jurisdiction or that the contract’s arbitration clause is unconscionable. Heller v. TriEnergy Inc., et al., No. 5:12-cv-45 (N.D. W.Va.).

U.S. District Judge John P. Bailey issued the order July 9, granting Chevron U.S.A. Inc.’s motion to compel while denying plaintiff Edgar Heller’s motion to remand.

At issue was a 2006 lease entered into by Heller and TriEnergy Inc., which purported to pay a bonus of $10 per acre for drilling rights to Heller’s 96-acre …