55-12A-1 Legislative intent
55-12A-2 Definitions
55-12A-3 Jurisdiction of the circuit court
55-12A-4 When court may appoint special commissioner; persons authorized to institute proceedings
55-12A-5 Persons to be joined as defendants; contents of verified petition; notice; guardian ad litem
55-12A-6 Appointment of a special commissioner; sale of lease; special commissioner’s report; when court not to authorize lease; investment of lease proceeds; search for owner; period during which unknown or missing owner or abandoning owner may establish identity
55-12A-7 When special commissioner may convey title in mineral interest to surface owner; form of deed; final report of special Commissioner; unknown owners; transfer of funds; rulemaking
55-12A-8 Petitioner’s attorneys’ fees, expenses and court costs
55-12A-9 Limitation of action by unknown or missing owner or abandoning owner
55-12A-10 Severability
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Terms Used In West Virginia Code > Chapter 55 > Article 12A - Lease and Conveyance of Mineral Interests Owned by Missing or Unknown Owners or Abandoning Owners

  • Abandoning owner: means any person, vested with title to any interest in minerals, who is proved to have abandoned the interest, that is, to have relinquished any right to possess or enjoy the interest with the expressed intention of terminating ownership of the interest, but without vesting the ownership in any other person. See West Virginia Code 55-12A-2
  • Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
  • Appraisal: A determination of property value.
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Interest in minerals: means any interest, real or personal, in coal, oil, gas or any other mineral, for which interest the property taxes are not delinquent as of the date of the filing of a petition under this article. See West Virginia Code 55-12A-2
  • Judgment: includes decrees and orders for the payment of money, or the conveyance or delivery of land or personal property, or some interest therein, or any undertaking, bond or recognizance which has the legal effect of a judgment. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • mineral development: means (a) mining coal by any method, or (b) drilling for and producing oil or gas by conventional techniques, or by enhanced recovery by injection of fluids of any kind into the producing formation, or (c) utilization of a gas-bearing formation as an underground gas storage reservoir within the meaning of article nine, chapter . See West Virginia Code 55-12A-2
  • Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
  • Surface owner: means any person vested with any interest in fee in the surface estate overlying the particular minerals sought to be developed under this article. See West Virginia Code 55-12A-2
  • Unknown or missing owner: means any person, vested with title to any interest in minerals, whose present identity or location cannot be determined from the records of the clerk of the county commission, the sheriff, the assessor and the clerk of the circuit court in the county in which the interest is located or by diligent inquiry in the vicinity of the owner'. See West Virginia Code 55-12A-2