Chapter 19 : Severed Mineral Interests

• Library: Standards for Examination of Real Estate Titles in Arkansas (2021 Ed.)

CHAPTER 19: SEVERED MINERAL INTERESTS

Standard 19.1 Creation of Severed Interests

1. A mineral interest in land may be severed from the surface by grant or reservation.²⁸²
2. A conveyance of land without reservation transfers whatever mineral title is owned by the grantor.²⁸³

Standard 19.2 "Mineral Lands"

A reservation of "mineral lands" in a Congressional grant or patent reserves only mineral deposits that were known at the time.²⁸⁴

Standard 19.3 Forfeiture and Sale of Minerals for Unpaid Taxes

Forfeitures of minerals prior to April 15, 1985, are void unless the record of taxes assessed was subjoined with the record of tax assessment for the surface.²⁸⁵ Ark. Code Ann. § 26-26-1112 does not validate all tax sales, but cures only this one defect. The statute eliminating the necessity of subjoinder, however, does not affect other statutory requirements for valid sales.

Standard 19.4 Adverse Possession

1. Adverse possession of the surface of the land is not adverse possession of a severed mineral estate.²⁸⁶
2. Adverse possession of a severed mineral interest does not commence until the mineral is reduced to actual possession, i.e., commercial quantities of the mineral have been extracted or removed from the earth.²⁸⁷

Standard 19.5 Interpretation of Mineral Reservations and Grants

A reservation or grant of "minerals" or "mineral rights" without specific reference to any specific mineral includes only those that were commonly known and recognized by legal or commercial usage in the area where the land is situated at the time the instrument was executed.²⁸⁸

Standard 19.6 Severed Minerals and Shifting Boundaries

Arkansas has not addressed...