CHAPTER 14 TITLE TO THE UNPATENTED MINING CLAIM

• Jurisdiction: United States

Mineral Title Examination
(Nov 1977)
CHAPTER 14
TITLE TO THE UNPATENTED MINING CLAIM
Keith M. Crouch
Attorney, Gorsuch, Kirgis, Campbell, Walker and Grover
Denver, Colorado

I. Legal Basis of the Title to the Unpatented Mining Claim.

A. Federal Law — General Mining Law of 1872.

1. Adopted the Location System for Mining Claims.

2. Mining Claims Must Be Located on Open Public Domain.

3. Application of General Mining Law is Limited to "Locatable" Minerals.

4. Discovery of a Valuable Mineral Deposit is Essential to Initiate a Title to an Unpatented Mining Claim, and a Mining Claim is Not Valid in the Absence of a Discovery. 30 U.S.C. § 23, Union Oil Company v. Smith, 249 U.S. 337 (1919); Cole v. Ralph, 252 U.S. 286 (1920).

5. Rules of Discovery.

a. Prudent Man Test of Discovery. Castle v. Womble, 19 L.D. 455 (1894).

b. Marketability Test of Discovery. United States v. Coleman, 390 U.S. 599 (1968).

c. Application of Discovery Rule to Cases Involving Rival Locators and the United States Versus a Mining Claimant.

6. Recording Requirements of Section 314 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (BLM Organic Act), Public Law 94-579.

7. Maintenance of the Unpatented Mining Claim — The Annual Assessment Work Requirement.

B. State Laws Govern the Mechanics of Locating a Mining Claim on the Ground, and Generally Require:

1. Some Form of Location Notice to be Posted on the Claimed Land.

2. The Marking of the Boundaries of the Claim on the Ground.

3. The Accomplishment of Discovery or Validation Work, or Its Substitute or Equivalent.

4. The Recordation of a Location Notice or Certificate in the Local Recording Office.

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II. Examination of the Title to the Unpatented Mining Claim.

A. Bureau of Land Management Records Check.

1. Purpose: To Determine Whether the Claims Being Examined Were Located on the Open Public Domain, and to Determine If the Recording Requirements of the BLM Organic Act Have Been Met.

2. Records to Be Examined.

a. Master Title Plat.

b. Historical Index.

B. County Records Check.

1. Purpose: To Determine Whether Location Notices or Certificates Have Been Properly Completed and Recorded as Required By Applicable State Law, to Construct a Chain of Title to the Claims Being Examined, Ascertain the Existence of Clouds or Encumbrances on the Record Title to the Claims, and to Check For Affidavits Attesting to the Performance of Annual Labor.

2. Records to Be Examined: Mining Claim...