(2) See La. C.C. art. 3499; State v. Stewart, 2022 La. App. LEXIS 2162, *4, 2022 0574 (La.App.1 Cir. 12/15/22), 2022 WL 17688412. (3) See Boone v. Conoco Phillips Co., 2013- 1196, p. 21 (La. App. 3 Cir. 5/7/14); 139 So.3d 1047, 1060-61; Songbyrd, Inc. v. Bearsville Recs., Inc., 104 F.3d 773, 779 (5th Cir. 1997). (4) See TSS Props., LLC v. Ray-Bayou, LLC, 329 So. 3d 411, 413, 2021 La. App. LEXIS 1320, *1, 20-533 (La.App. 3 Cir. 09/22/21), 2021 WL 4303332. (5) See Covey Park Gas, LLC v. Bull Run Acquisitions II, LLC, 310 So. 3d 777, 2021 La. App. LEXIS 14 (La.App. 2 Cir. 2021), writ denied, 2021 La. LEXIS 811 (La. Apr. 7, 2021).
The Donald Zadeck Succession filed a motion for Summary Judgment on the issue of prescription, alleging that the Vandivers’ claim was a personal action for breach of contract against Zadeck Energy, which had been prescribed under Louisiana’s ten-year prescriptive period. 2 The Court examined whether Defendants’ claims constituted a personal action directly against Donald Zadeck, or a real action seeking recognition of ownership or enforcement of the rights in immovable property, which is imprescriptible. 3 While the Court recognized that Defendants’ claims appeared to be a real action-seeking recognition of their ownership in the Zadeck Leases, the interest was now outstanding in a third party (Comstock), and there was no recorded instrument reflecting their grant of working interests, as required under La. C.C. 3338.The Vandivers’ claims amounted to a personal action prescribed in 2019, ten years after Douglas Vandiver first consulted his attorney. Zadeck reiterates the importance of proper recordation of all interests in mineral rights, including leases, in the parish conveyance or mortgage records where the immovable is located.These are real property rights, which require purchasers to establish either privity of contract, assignment of rights, or a stipulation pour autrui as outlined in La. Rev. Stat.Ann. § 31:16. The Louisiana public records doctrine denies the effect of rights unless they are recorded. 4 Moreover, once recorded, deeds cannot be reformed to the disadvantage of third parties who relied on public records showing that the property belonged to the party from whom they acquired title. 5
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