OHIO LANDOWNER COUNSEL

What Lies Below
Can Shape
Everything Above.

Oil and gas leases, mineral ownership, royalties, and surface rights—explained and protected.

Representing Ohio landowners and mineral-rights holders.

START HERE

Start with the issue

Choose the question that most closely matches what changed.

OHIO EXPERIENCE

Focused on Ohio.
Grounded in Title.
Built for Results.

Oil and gas law is about more than leases—it is about property, family, and long-term decisions. EQUES helps Ohio landowners interpret complex documents and resolve problems before they grow.

Deep roots in Eastern and Southeastern Ohio, with statewide reach.

Title, probate, real-estate, contract, and litigation experience in one team.

Trusted by the Ohio Farm Bureau as an advocate for Ohio landowners and mineral-rights holders.

OUR APPROACH

Clear steps. No mystery.

1
Listen & Learn
We start with your property, documents, timing, and goals.
2
Analyze & Advise
We explain what the records and agreements mean—and where the risks are.
3
Act & Protect
We negotiate, investigate, document, or litigate the path you choose.

PRACTICE AREAS WE HANDLE

Counsel for the full life of the land

Oil & Gas Leases

Review, negotiation, amendments, extensions, and termination questions.

Mineral Ownership & Title

Reservations, severances, heirs, probate, and dormant-mineral issues.

Royalties & Audits

Deductions, decimal interests, suspense, accounting, and underpayment.

Surface Rights & Use

Pads, roads, pipelines, water, crops, timber, access, and restoration.

Disputes & Litigation

Lease enforcement, title disputes, payment claims, and property damage.

LANDOWNER INSIGHTS

Understand the document before it becomes the problem.

Plain-language guides drawn from the questions Ohio landowners bring to us most often.

LEASE GUIDE

Before You Sign an Oil and Gas Lease

Five questions every Ohio landowner should ask before accepting a lease or amendment.

OWNERSHIP GUIDE

Who Owns the Minerals Under Your Property?

A practical starting point for deeds, reservations, heirs, probate, and title review.

ROYALTY GUIDE

Understanding Oil and Gas Royalty Payments

Trace changing checks through production, price, deductions, ownership, and accounting.

YOUR EQUES TEAM

Landowner counsel with litigation depth.

Your matter may begin with a deed or royalty statement and end in negotiation, probate, title work, or court. Our team can follow the issue where it leads.

Visit the EQUES practice page

Christopher M. White

Executive Partner · Oil & Gas, Real Estate, and Business

Thomas White

Senior Litigation Partner · Complex disputes and trial strategy

Austin Warehime

Attorney · Landowner representation and Southeast Ohio counsel

COMMON QUESTIONS

A better decision starts with the right question.

These are general answers. The controlling deeds, leases, records, orders, and facts may change the result.

Does owning the surface mean I own the oil and gas?

Not always. Ohio law allows the surface and mineral estates to be owned separately. The current deed may not tell the whole story, so determining ownership often requires tracing earlier deeds, mineral instruments, probate records, and recorded leases.

Can a five-year oil and gas lease last longer than five years?

Why would my royalty check change if the percentage stayed the same?

Can drilling occur if I own only the surface?

What should I do if operations damage my land or water?

THE BEST TIME TO REVIEW IT MAY BE BEFORE YOU SIGN.

Bring us the deed, the lease, the check, or the question.

We will help you understand what it means and what comes next.

1-844-MY-EQUES

What Lies BelowCan ShapeEverything Above.